Paying the Price
by Liestra
Summary: Starling has joined the Storm Hawks! But one of the members isn't so happy about it. Feeling like he's no longer a part of the team, Finn decides to seek his fortune elsewhere. But what he finds is not what he was expecting, and his future looks bleak.
1. Chapter 1

Greetings, Welcome and Salutations! I have finally returned with another story! Before I forget...

Don't own the Storm Hawks, Nerdcorp does.

OK, now that's out of the way. Sorry it took so long to post another story. Not because I was unfinished with it, not because I was too busy. Nope. Couldn't decide on a title. Sigh... It's alway's the little things. Must of went through a few dozen and none seemed to work. Either they described one aspect or just plain didn't fit.

So what's this one about? I originally was going to do a story exploring the 'what if' of Starling joining the group and off they go and have an adventure and everybody's happy as can be. And then I got to thinking - What If... Starling joined and everybody wasn't happy about it. What If one of the members ended up not liking the the way things were turning out.

And being a self described Finnfanatic, naturally I settled on him being the one to get his nose bent out of shape. Actually though, he does make the most sense. Turn up his self-centeredness, throw in his childish behavior, stir in his impulsiveness along with a healthy dose of teen anxiety and voila! I've got a story.

This one is a bit darker than the other's I've written. And longer (22 chapters in all and some of them wordy). But it is complete and I will do my best to update a chapter a day - but keep in mind the time of year - holidays approach and family take precedence). Also, I'm going to rate this a strong T due to future implied situations. Nothing graphic and probably nothing anyone with access to today's society wouldn't know about, but still. Can't say I didn't give fair warning.

But although this does contain some angst and despair, this is me that wrote this. So along with some sadness and sorrow it does also contain some action, some adventure, some romance (oh yeah...), humor and joy.

One thing it does not contain? One word of conversation. Don't know why, just came out in first person reflective.

Enough of my blathering on. Hope you enjoy, let me know what you think (If you would be so kind), and read on, thou gentle readers...

Chapter 1 -

He watched the pair who stood together, each one green-eyed, his own blue eyes narrowed. He had never thought of himself as jealous before, but he was burning with it now. Ever since She had arrived. Everybody else thought it was just wonderful, that the Great Starling had finally joined up with them. Even he had been happy at first. Until recently…

Aerrow rarely looked at him anymore. Wasn't he supposed to be the red-haired Sky Knight's wingman? But on every mission it was Starling who rode beside Aerrow. The two of them were always together, discussing this, debating that. When Aerrow rode out on reconnaissance missions, it was Her that went with him, never Finn.

Piper was no help either. She was so enamored of the older female that she went around with her head in the clouds most of the time. It was embarrassing, really, how the once unflappable girl acted like a total retard, stumbling over her words and her feet in her clumsy attempts to gain Starling's attention.

The one time he had tried to confide his feelings to Junko, the good natured Wallop had looked at him in confusion. Why shouldn't Finn be happy that there was another member to their squadron? After all, more was better, wasn't it? And Starling was nice, Junko liked her. Finn had bit his lip from retorting that Junko liked just about anybody as long as they weren't wearing a Cyclonian uniform.

Stork was Stork, accepting the new arrival with a mixture of gleeful apprehension. Part of him was happy that Starling was with them, part of him was sure that this new arrival would cause all of them doom.

Finn didn't even try to confide in Radarr. Wherever Aerrow went, Radarr was right with him. Heck, Finn had even seen the blue furred whatzit riding on Starling's shoulder a few times.

No, it seemed that only Finn saw things the way they really were. The makeup of the team had shifted. And he felt like he was being pushed to the back.

What made things even worse was the incredible string of bad luck he seemed to be going through. Everyone had noticed it. Finn was making about one in every ten shots, most of them going wide or worse, hitting his own teammates. He'd knocked Junko clean off his skimmer during a battle just the other day. Boy, had the Wallop been mad. Aerrow had managed to keep the huge teen from flattening Finn, but then, Aerrow wasn't too happy either.

Finn really dreaded the after battle recaps, a little routine that Starling had suggested and that Aerrow had naturally eagerly embraced. More and more Finn just sat silently through them, his arms folded and his eyes down, as his teammates made sure to pick apart his every wrong move. Constructive criticism is what She called it. Finn called it something else.

Sighing Finn decided to go to his room, it being the only place that he felt he truly belonged any more. At least there he could take out his frustrations on his Rock Machine, banging out some kicking music. All though even that lately had begun to sound off. Hard to feel inspired if your surroundings were less than motivational. As he let the door slide shut behind him, he was unaware of the troubled looks that followed him.

***

Aerrow and Starling exchanged shared looks of frustration, confusion and in the case of Starling, hurt. Neither one could understand Finn's latest behavior. Aerrow was beginning to become quite irritated with the blonde. He was used to his wingman's prima-donna ways, but this was starting to go too far - Finn's actions were beginning to affect both the team and Finn's performance. So far he had managed to head off the others reactions to Finn's childish petulance, but he wasn't sure for how long. Piper especially was more than her usual peeved self at Finn, and both Junko and Stork were picking up on the strained relationships.

And then there was Starling. She said she understood that Finn would be feeling a little left out of things, and that given time, he'd work his way out of it. Well, that had been two weeks ago and if anything, Finn was getting worse. He barely showed his face, when he did he was surly, did the least amount he could, gave absolutely no feedback at any of the pre or post meetings and in general was becoming a big pain in the rear.

Aerrow had let a lot of things slide with Finn over the years he had known him. Aerrow was wondering if that had been the wrong thing to do. But things had been different then. Now…

Cyclonia was stepping up its invasions, pulling out more and more of the bigger guns, larger squadrons, invading two or more terras at a time. It was all the combined Sky Knights could do to repel the attacks and hold on to the lands they had. Starling had thought that Cyclonia was becoming desperate, that tides were turning and that she had heard through her vast spy network that there had even been some rebellions on a few of Cyclonia's furthest holdings.

Aerrow only knew that the time for fun was passing. The attacks were becoming more vicious, better armed and harder to repel. He needed his teammates to be at their top form, not be distracted by petty emotions.

Frowning, Aerrow stepped towards Finn's door. It was time to have a talk.

***

Starling watched Aerrow walk toward the sharpshooter's door and sighed. She had thought long and hard about joining the Storm Hawks and had finally given in. She was lonely and needed company. The long solitary missions were getting to her and she needed, craved companionship. Even though she still feared the possibility of losing her friends again, she knew it was a chance she had to take. Hiding didn't make the monsters go away. And at first everything had been great. They had all welcomed her, helped her move what little personal items she had into the room they had prepared for her. She had settled in and tried to become one of the teammates. Even though she was a Sky Knight and had more years of experience, this was Aerrow's squadron and he was her leader now. Used to being on her own, she found it hard not to take control, but had managed. Aerrow was smart and very capable. He seemed to find her suggestions and advice welcome and had instituted many of her ideas.

She had talked for hours to him, along with Piper, exchanging plans and ideas, coming up with strategies that they implemented on their missions. Starling still had to hide her smile when working with the dark skinned girl. She'd never had anyone have a crush on her before, and Piper's obvious hero worship was a bit overwhelming. But she had to admit that Piper had amazing abilities. A bit unorthodox at times, but then the entire squadron wasn't exactly your run of the mill.

There was no one who could pilot a carrier like Stork could, especially a ship in the condition of the Condor. Some of the paces he put that ship through would tear other, newer ships in half. Not that the Condor came through unscathed. But between Stork and Junko, they soon had it back in working order, though not exactly in tip-top shape.

Starling was astounded by the Wallop as well. She hadn't had much dealings with the race before, but those she had met demonstrated the talents native to the race. Strong, dumb and mean. Well, Junko was definitely strong, but there was nothing dumb about him. Oh, he'd never win a prize for having the most smarts, but he wasn't a burnt out crystal either. And there wasn't a mean bone in his body. Why, the big teen practiced yoga for instance and she was pretty sure he slept with a teddy bear.

She was rapidly gaining a soft spot in her heart for Radarr. For something that couldn't talk, the small blue-furred creature could certainly communicate. And she had found few beings with as much loyalty. She wasn't sure what it was or why it was there, Aerrow had said that he'd always had it by his side, but she certainly found it to be a valuable member of the team.

And then there was Finn. She had seen him during the few missions she had shared before joining with them. Sure he had been reckless and impulsive, but he had also seemed daring. Who else would fire at Master Cyclonis after being caught trying to steal the Aurora Stone back? She had heard of his going power mad when she and Aerrow had gone on the mission to free the Terradons, but it had been Finn's skills that had made it possible for the scientists to escape the Energy Cannons of Bogoton. And yes, he had gotten a little carried away and broke a string on his guitar, but he had managed to hold off the pulses of the Metranomic Cannon long enough for the team to take out the towering terra it stood on. She had even heard of reports that he had become the fabled Great Domo of the lost terra of Vapos, had even snuck on board a Murk Raider ship to steal some rare element that was threatening the health of the Vaposians. She had asked Stork about it, and although he hadn't denied it, he was a little vague on the details.

But the young teen she had observed the last two weeks or so was nothing like she had known or heard about. She knew Finn had a tendency to become childish, vain, selfish; not only from what she had observed herself but also from Piper's reports. But this wasn't just teenage anxiety. She could feel his animosity toward her. She had tried to become his friend, invited him to show her his skill with the crossbow, offered to train with him. He had stared at her and then turned and walked away. And his actions were beginning to be felt by the others as well. She had watched them give the sharpshooter looks of confusion, annoyance, irritation and even anger.

She was starting to wonder if she had made a mistake, joining up with the team.

***

Piper bent over the map she was studying, but her eyes did not see it. They saw red, instead. Stupid, irritating, dumb little fool. How could he be such an idiot? She'd been mad at Finn before, but never like this. Just what was his problem? She'd never known anyone who could get under her skin like he could. Usually he managed to escape her wrath by actually doing something worthwhile, but lately…it was as if he wasn't even trying. And how he could treat Starling the way he was. She was glad Aerrow was finally going to have a talk with Finn. He deserved it. Many times over the last few days she had gone to Aerrow, complaining to him about Finn's dismal attitude, his rudeness and his lack of interest. She had wanted to take the annoying, frustrating, maddening jerk and bang his head against something, Did he not have a clue? Idiot. He was such an idiot.

***

Junko had observed his best buddy with a mixture of sorrow and confusion. He just couldn't understand why Finn was being so mean to Starling. Starling was nice. She was great. She had actually listened to Junko when he had shown her his latest addition to his collection, agreed with him that it was an especially nice piece of silvery metal, the best he'd found yet. And why did Finn think she was in the way? She fit in nicely, and she never seemed to think she was better than any of the rest. If anything, it was Finn who seemed to be getting in the way. Junko loved his buddy, but, boy, the guy sure could get irritating sometimes. He was sorry that Aerrow was going to have to talk with him, but it was for his own good. It was just too bad it had to come to this. Junko hoped Aerrow would go easy on the blond. Finn's feelings could get hurt easily.

***

Stork stared out the front window, checking for signs of anything that might attack. So far the clouds had not morphed into Hysterian Vapor Fiends, but one could never be too careful. Doom was always just around the corner. Like right now for instance. Stork could have told them, it was a well known Merbian idiom – the more people there were, the better the chance that doom would fall. And seven was such an unlucky number. Just about the most unlucky number there was. Well next to three, of course, but that was a given. Then there was one, well, everyone knew just how unlucky one was, it was right next to zero, and there was nothing worse than zero. Except for the negatives, but dwelling on that was a sure way to invite any lurking mindworms to start drilling. Yep, all the good that Starling had given by joining the group was fast being undone by the ill luck such a connection surely contained. Only a matter of time before they were knocked out of the sky by a meteorite. Or eaten by voracious mutant mud eels. Piper might think they were only an inch long and nibbled on moss, but he knew there were some that were as massive as a house, and preyed on the unsuspecting. Stork hunched his shoulders, his left eye twitching.

***

Radarr watched his master walk toward the blond one's door and sighed. The big ones could be such a mystery. Why they fought to begin with was something he couldn't understand. The Cyclonian one's didn't seem to be after food, and they seemed to have plenty of shelter so what was their problem? But if his master fought them, then they were his enemies too. But especially disturbing was when friends turned away from each other. He had watched the blond growing more and more discontent, spreading his bad mood among the rest. Radarr knew his master and the blond shared a special bond, but he also knew it was being stretched tight.

Radarr sighed again. The big ones were strange.


	2. Chapter 2

Strapped for time and wanted to get today's chapter up and out there. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Finn turned his head from where he was laying on his bunk and stared at his door. He wondered if he just ignored the knock that whoever it was would go away. Hearing the knock again, followed by Aerrow's imperious voice, Finn heaved a heavy sigh and got up. Thumbing the switch, he stepped back as his friend and leader entered. Judging by the dark look on Aerrow's face, this wasn't going to be a friendly visit. Then again, when was the last time he and Aerrow had gotten together for a friendly anything? He walked over to his desk and leaned against it, his arms crossed. Aerrow stood in front of him, his legs balanced and his hands on his hips. Finn recognized the pose. It was Aerrow's 'I'm in charge here' look. Great.

He silently listened as Aerrow read him the riot act, accusing him of not being a team member, ordering him to shape up and do so soon, how Aerrow was tired of Finn not pulling his weight around here, falling behind on chores, or doing them sloppily, and most of all, how Finn was letting them all down by his recent behavior towards Starling. It was obviously affecting Finn's marksman abilities, along with causing all the teammates to feel on edge. Aerrow told Finn that he was not going to stand for it any more. The red-head had then tried to soften the blow by telling him how much of a friend Finn was to him, how he knew it was a bit of an adjustment getting used to a new member, how they had been together – just the six of them for so long. Aerrow went on to say that he couldn't understand why Finn was being the way he was, and that if he wanted to talk, Aerrow was always open.

Looking into his leader's green eyes it had been on the tip of his tongue to spill his guts out, tell Aerrow how he was beginning to feel left out, that no-one seemed to appreciate him anymore. But something stopped him. Something reared up and said that if Aerrow was any kind of friend, he'd already know what was wrong. So instead he nodded and told Aerrow what he wanted to hear, that Finn would do better, he'd play nice and be a good little Storm Hawk. Well, maybe in not quite those words. Finn could spin his tales pretty good, thank you. Aerrow looked at him unconvincingly, but finally nodded and left the room.

He waited until the door closed and then stuck his tongue out. Then he pounced on his bed and buried his head into his pillow.

***

Finn tried, he really did. But the writing was on the wall. More and more he could feel the others drawing away from him, excluding him out. He had started the next day after Aerrow's lecture determined to show them that he, Finn, wasn't a loser. He had tackled his chores with a new found (but not really felt) enthusiasm and had even smiled at Starling. At least his lips had. And the next battle they were in he managed to take out three of the Talons. And he hadn't even been knocked off his ride. Afterward he had managed to look pleased at Aerrow's compliments during the hated post session.

But as days passed, Finn knew it wasn't going to last. The Condor had a new star on it, and everybody revolved around her. It wasn't as if Finn wanted to be the main attraction (Okay, maybe he did, was it too much to ask that people see him as he really was?), but at least they used to be as one. Sure they had their little differences, but they had worked together. Now it was as if Finn were a lonely comet, circling further and further out into the cold space. He no longer felt as if the others were his friends anymore, as if he had lost his place, become unimportant, unwanted…unneeded.

More and more he began to entertain ideas of leaving, of just packing up his stuff and going away. One thing that stopped him was that he really wasn't sure where he'd go. The only places he'd like to go were places they'd know he'd go to – Vapos, Tropica, Amazonia. And they'd probably drag him back, just out of spite. The other reason that stopped him was a small feeling of duty. They were his friends after all, even if they were treating him pretty badly. He'd feel awful if something happened to them after he left.

Still, it wasn't as if he would leave them shorthanded. She was a Sky Knight after all. She had as many skills if not more than Aerrow, and her skimmer had a cannon on it. So it wasn't as if they wouldn't be without protection. Maybe they might miss him for a little while, but he was sure they'd get over it. It was pretty obvious they didn't want much to do with him now.

Time to move on. He looked around his room and took in the pictures on the wall, the schematic drawing of his crossbow, the various targets showing bulls-eyes, his guitar. His guitar. He still had his music, even if they didn't seem to find it as amazing as he did. That was it, he'd find a band, join up with it, put all this behind him. Why not? One couldn't be a warrior forever. Besides, he'd probably have a better chance at getting a girl than being a Storm Hawk did. He never could quite understand why chicks didn't flock to him. He'd always thought girls had a thing for a guy in a uniform. And wasn't being in a Sky Knight squadron just about the best thing there was? Well, not anymore it wasn't.

As Finn lay on his bed he began to recall a tale he'd heard, about a quadrant of Atmos far to the northwest. It was almost as legendary as Vapos, but people did come and go from there. It was said to be hidden behind a gap in the large, rocky mountain range, one of the few continuous landmasses on Atmos. Supposedly the terras on the other side were even fewer and far between than usual, but they were larger than average and overflowed with riches. The tale he had heard was that refugees from the war were beginning to head out there, escaping from the turmoil into the supposed safety. He began to smile, it was perfect. He could get away and start a new life all at the same time. Nobody would think to look for him there, and no one there would probably know who he was.

Feeling the first stirrings of enthusiasm in a long time, Finn sat up and headed to his desk. He would need to plan this out. He knew they all thought of him as an empty headed moron, but he wasn't as stupid as he sometimes made out to be. He realized he couldn't just roar off into the sky and magically arrive at the pass into the northern lands. But how was he going to find his way? He couldn't just ask Piper to look at the maps; it would be like waving a red flag. And he'd have to find a way to pack up some provisions, no telling how many inhabited terra's there would be on the way. He had some money, but not much, and he planned on taking only enough stuff to get him by. Clothes, he'd have to wear civilian clothes, not his uniform, personal essentials, his guitar of course. Food, water, energy crystals. He tapped his pencil against his chin trying to think of anything else he'd need.

When nothing else came to mind he began to think of when he would make his escape. Dead of night would be best. Steal down the ladder into the hanger, load up his skimmer, open the hanger door, wheel out his ride, hop on, drop down low before opening the wings, take off. Easy. Then it would be a matter of skipping from terra to terra as he made his way northwest.

He suddenly grinned as he thought of somehow leaving a false trail. They'd expect him to go to Vapos first, probably. After all, he was the Great Domo. He was more than a little disappointed that he couldn't go there. They at least appreciated him, knew him as the amazing person he was. And there was that one girl with the silvery hair and light purple eyes that seemed enamored of him – or did she have light blonde hair and blue eyes – no matter. But it was too expected. He glanced down at the list he'd made –

Gather stuff.

Leave false trail

Go to northern lands.

Yep, sounded like a plan to him.


	3. Chapter 3

Oh my... Finn has decided to leave. The poor, silly impetuous fool. That's not going to sit too well with his teammates...

A/N EEEKKK!!! I just reread the intro to the first chapter and realized I wrote 'must of' instead of 'must have'. English teacher's the world over - alive AND dead - are rolling right now. I promise I will go straight to the nearest chalk board and write "I will not be grammatically incorrect" a hundred times. Um... tomorrow. Yeah...

Chapter 3 -

Stork woke up, instantly suspicious – well, more suspicious than usual. Had he heard the hanger door rumble open? It was the middle of the night, there had been no proximity alarms. Hastily gathering his armor, he grabbed a large heavy pan he kept nearby and moved silently into the hallway. Glancing around him with narrowed eyes, he quickly made his way to the bridge. Checking to see if any of his traps had been triggered, he sighed with relief to see that nothing was out of place. As he moved towards the ship's controls, he noticed a red light blinking. He'd been right, the hanger door had been opened. But from the inside. Frowning, he rapidly moved toward the lower level. Sure enough, the door was wide open. Stork checked the controls but couldn't find a short in them. Still, the old ship had some tricks up her sleeve and this wasn't the first time he'd found something that shouldn't be the way it was. Closing the doors, Stork patted his beloved Condor's metal bulkhead and went back to bed. Just as sleep overtook him, he thought he had seen something missing, but what was it?

***

Piper yawned sleepily as she walked toward the large round table on the bridge. Reaching underneath for the many storage drawers she opened the one containing her carefully cataloged maps. And shrieked. They were every which way! Somebody had rifled through them and had not put them back in order! Outraged, she stormed over to Aerrow's door and pounded on it. When the door opened to reveal the red-head's questioning face, she dragged him over to the offending mess and stood there pointing first at it and then over at the door of the one she was sure had done this. Aerrow stood there with a bemused look on his face, pointing out that Finn would be the last person to show any interest in her maps. Piper pointed out that he would be the only person to mess them up this bad.

By that time the others had gathered on the bridge, with one notable exception. All of them confessed having not even opened the drawer, let alone taken out a map. As one, they all turned toward the door that hid the only remaining suspect. Aerrow sighed and shook his head. Junko then said he would go get him and walked over to Finn's door. Knocking politely, he waited for an answer. And waited. Looking back at the group, he pounded again, a little harder. Still not getting an answer, Junko yelled out to Finn to open up. By this time Aerrow had walked over to stand next to Junko, his face growing stern. On impulse he keyed the door release and was surprised when it opened. Lately Finn had been keeping it locked.

As soon as Aerrow stepped inside, he knew something was wrong. First of all there was no Finn. The bed was made, the room was cleaned up, all of the pictures on the walls gone. As Aerrow stood there he knew there were other things missing. He heard Junko's soft inhale and turned. The big Wallop was staring down at a small pile of stuff on Finn's desk. As the horn-nosed teen turned to Aerrow, he could see Junko's grey eyes beginning to water. Walking over he found himself looking down at Finn's uniform, neatly folded so the chute emblem on the back was up. Alongside it was Finn's crossbow. Seeing Junko hold out a piece of paper in his large shaking hand, Aerrow slowly reached for it.

_By the time you get this, I'll be long gone. I'm sorry I couldn't do better, that I've become a liability. But maybe this is the right thing to do. I am going to seek my fame and fortune, don't try and find me. You can do whatever you want with my stuff. _

_I wish you all the best of luck. I wish we could all be friends. But I can't stay here anymore. I don't fit in._

_Goodbye, Finn_

Aerrow let the paper slip from his hand and float to the floor.

***

In rearranging the maps Piper found several that showed the vicinity of Vapos to be on top. She felt it was too easy, but then Finn had never been subtle. In searching the ship they had found a number of the supplies missing: some food, a few bottles of water and a small bag of charged energy crystals. Finn's personal effects were gone from his shelf in the bathroom, along with some regular clothes and his guitar. He had also taken his earphones but had left his records.

Walking down to the hanger bay with the maps in her hands, she spotted Aerrow standing by the hanger door, looking out of it. At least he was no longer staring at the round Stormhawk emblems that Finn had removed from his skimmer and leaned against the wall where his ride was usually parked. As she walked up to him, he turned towards her. Though dry, his eyes were almost as red as his hair. Even through her own sadness, she felt a flash of irritation. Of all the selfish things the little idiot had done. Always thinking of himself. So his nose was bent out of shape because Starling had joined the group. She wanted to find him and tell him to grow up. Right after hugging him, though. She still couldn't really believe he had thought the only thing he could do was leave.

Aerrow glanced at the maps and listened to her summary. He agreed that it was too easy, but they didn't have anything else to go by. Tropica and Amazonia were too far away to be reached easily by skimmer, Terra Ray and Terra Neon could be reached from this position only by going through Cyclonian territory; leaving just Atmosia and Vapos within a day's ride. Aerrow doubted Finn would go to Atmosia.

Nodding her head, Piper returned to the bridge and gave the coordinates to Stork. In no time at all they were racing across the sky. Aerrow had returned as well and was looking out one of the spyscopes, searching for any sign of a blue/white/brown skimmer. Junko was doing the same with the other scope, but Piper doubted he could see anything with the tears that kept falling. She sighed and sat down at the table, sliding next to Starling.

***

Starling had been very quiet since they had found Finn to be gone. She knew it wasn't her fault, but still, if she hadn't joined, the team would still be together. She kept going back and forth, first being angry at the blond youth, then feeling sorrow for his running away. She had given each of the remaining Stormhawks her support, commiserated with them, sharing their confused anger. Yet she was the one feeling like an outsider. When they found the boy, she would think hard about resigning herself.

***

Junko kept his eyes glued to the scope, even though every fiber in his being wanted to go to his room, grab his teddy bear, curl up and just sob. If only he had known how miserable Finn had been. Finn wasn't unwanted, he wasn't a liable..a libala, a screw-up. Junko also wanted to hop on his skimmer and go tearing after his missing friend, but knew that wouldn't do any good. The Condor was much faster. Even with Finn's head start, they should be at Vapos by early afternoon. And then he would grab his friend and just hug him and never let him go. Followed by a very stern lecture to never to do that again, he had worried his friends. Then he would hug Finn some more.

***

Stork kept the ship running at maximum speed, even though he knew it was fruitless. Finn had probably been captured by a roving Talon squadron, or struck down by a bolt of lightning, or his wings had fallen off and he'd drifted into the wasteland, to be eaten by one of the many horrible creatures that inhabited that gruesome land. Might as well just divide up Finn's stuff. Though he was going to kinda miss the guy. Even though the sharpshooter could be the most irritating being on the planet (Just what would he have done if Stork had agreed to fit a bunch of skyquats in his mouth?), he did have his uses. Stork couldn't think of any at the moment, and kept remembering instead of Finn dragging him into a dragon's lair, or selling the Condor, or making so many clones of himself that he had threatened to send the ship and everything in it to the surface. Stork frowned – just why where they going after Finn? But deep inside he knew – one didn't give up on a friend. Even if he had given up on you.

***

Radarr watched the others and sighed. They were all so sad. All because the blond one had left. At first they had been angry at him, then they were all sorry he had left, then they had been angry again, then sad once more. Seemed like the blond was always making a mess of things. Oh, well.

The big ones were strange.


	4. Chapter 4

Finn has struck out on his own. But not all is rosy in the northlands...

Chapter 4 -

Finn sat on the back of his skimmer and looked down at the large terra in front of him. It had been a long ride but he had finally made it to the northwestern lands. Or Norwessunluns as they said it. The people here had a tendency to swallow up the consonants. That wasn't the only thing they swallowed up. He had never found a people to be so suspicious, so downright stingy in his life. As soon as they realized that you were not one of them, that you were one of the dreaded 'refusers' from the 'downluns', then eyes narrowed, mouths frowned and doors slammed shut. The few merchants he'd managed to find to do any kind of business with had charged him at least double, he was sure of it.

And they charged for everything. Charged you just to land your skimmer, then to store it, then to get it out of storage, and then they charged you a leaving fee! And it didn't matter if you decided never mind, I'll just take off right away, they surrounded you with their sky police and made sure you paid.

Finn took a deep breath and mentally counted up what little money he had left. Hopefully enough to land, store his ride and find something to eat. He wouldn't land at all, except he hadn't eaten in over twenty four hours and was getting very light headed. One thing was for sure, he didn't have enough cash to go back to the 'downluns'.

And he wanted to. Things certainly hadn't worked out the way he had hoped, no – make that expected them to. The one and only time he had set up his guitar, plugged into a handy outlet and set out a bag for coins, he had barely struck a few notes of the most rocking, kicking music ever heard when he had found himself bodily picked up and tossed into a jail cell. Something about disturbing the peace and violating the no pandering laws. He'd managed to have enough to pay the fine and get out, but then he was informed that if he didn't have a job or family on the terra, then he was unwelcome and would have to leave immediately or jailed for being indigent. Whatever that meant. Finn had no choice but to take to the skies and travel onward. If he had known then, he would have turned right around. But he had kept going, ever hopeful that the next terra would be the one in which he'd find fame and riches.

And now he was stuck. He didn't even have the option of playing music for money, food or lodging any more, having hocked his Rock Monster two terras back when he found he hadn't enough money to pay the storage and leaving fee. Finn had thought hard and long, but considering that the sheriff was standing close by giving him evil looks had persuaded Finn that leaving was best. And as much as it hurt to give up his guitar, there was no way he could part with his skimmer. That was freedom. Without it he had no option. Except being thrown in the local jail and made to work off the 'boarding fees'. Which were a joke, since they paid just enough to cover what you owed, so when you had served your sentence, you still didn't have enough to pay off the storage fee, which of course would have kept climbing. He had been fortunate to run into a fellow refugee who had been friendly enough to explain the area's strange way of doing business.

The guy had told Finn that the people who had originally settled this land had done so because of some long forgotten disagreement with the rest of Atmos. As such the two lands didn't have much to do with each other. Then came along the war, people from the other side started showing up on the native's doorsteps and naturally, the natives weren't too happy with it. Sure the area was prosperous, but the natives felt that their hard earned affluence was being drained by the newcomers. As such, the natives were doing all they could to hang on to what was theirs, even if being incredibly rude and unhelpful was the way to do it.

Finn sighed and made to land.


	5. Chapter 5

Meanwhile - back at the ranch, er, Condor...

Chapter 5

First they had searched Vapos, finding nothing. They had managed to get to Tropica and had been on their way to Terra Ray when an all points bulletin had gone out, alerting them to a huge attacking force being seen leaving Cyclonian territory. They had no choice but to turn around and race back, joining the Rex Guardians and the Blizzarians in a joint counterattack. It had been rough, but they had managed to win out.

From then on it seemed like a cork had been pulled out of Cyclonia and fighting forces after fighting forces streamed out. Huge destroyers, accompanied by the Talon carrier ships were showing up at every point of the territory, even areas they had never before been seen at. High alert became constant alert. The Condor and its crew found itself racing from one side of Atmos to the other, putting out one fire only to find another burning hot somewhere else.

It was all Aerrow could do to keep his team together. They were incredibly exhausted, but none of them would even admit being beat. If anything, they fought harder. Piper was pulling out all the stops on her strategic planning and coupled with Starling's advice had been the difference between stunning victory and sudden death. Still, the effects of the continuous battle readiness, along with the long and hard fights were beginning to wear them down.

When Aerrow had a moment to breath, his thoughts turned to one topic. Finn's leaving. He would never have given it even an iota of a possibility that his wingman would actually take off. Aerrow had been aware in the back of his mind that someday he might have to face losing one of his friends, but at the hands of the enemy. For Finn to just walk away, to leave, to turn his back on them was – almost unforgivable. He had tried to keep up the smoldering anger he had felt when he had gotten over the initial shock of finding his best friend gone. But it was eaten away by a stronger emotion. Worry. There had been no sign of the sharpshooter. Starling had put out an alert through her network, and they had told all of the other squadrons to be on the lookout for Finn, but so far no-one had seen neither hide nor hair of the blond. It was as if he'd dropped into the wasteland. Aerrow doubted that Finn would have taken that route, but still…

Where was he? And was he all right? And would he come back?

***

Piper made the final adjustment and pressed the button to charge the new crystals she'd purchased. Along with all the other duties she had, this one she enjoyed the most. She loved taking a raw hunk of stone and turning into a glowing crystal, tuned to its proper frequency. All though she hadn't as much time as she'd like for her experimenting, with the constant fighting keeping her too busy to do more than replenish their supplies. As she worked her mind flitted from the last battle they had fought to the plans she, Starling and Aerrow were working on; plans that they felt would help ease the continuous strain from always being ready at a moment's notice. As she removed the now glowing stone and replaced it with a new one, she found herself thinking about a subject that was becoming more and more hurtful. Finn.

She too, had been in shock when she found him gone. And like Aerrow, she had fairly seethed with anger at the blonde's stupidity. She had picked up the note from where it had landed and didn't believe one word of it. Not at first. She thought it was just some idiotic prank he had pulled to grab attention. She fully expected him to show up, grinning that irritating smile of his, and telling everybody how sure he was that they had missed him.

But as the day came to an end, when they had arrived on Vapos and not found him there, when she put together the facts that he had left his crossbow and taken his guitar, she began to have her doubts. And as days became weeks, she knew he was gone, lost somewhere out there. And they couldn't go find him, beat some sense into him and drag his behind back. She found she missed his silly comments, his annoying jokes, even that ridiculous air guitar routine he would do. She even missed his lame impression of Ravess. She missed him.

***

Junko sighed as he picked up the wrench and tightened a bolt on his skimmer. One good thing about being under constant attack meant he was too busy to worry about his best buddy, Finn. He just knew the little guy was in trouble out there. What he couldn't understand was why did he leave? Didn't he know how much he meant to Junko, to all of them? And Finn was their friend, too. Friends just didn't leave friends. Aerrow had tried to explain it to Junko, but he still didn't get it. Okay, maybe Finn was feeling down because of his poor shooting skills and that he wasn't doing good and was being a jerk about Starling, but he shouldn't have left. And the bad thing about being under constant attack was they couldn't go look for Finn either. Where was he? What if he was hurt and waiting for them to get there? And they couldn't?

Junko felt the wrench snap and looked down to see he had torn the bolt completely off. Sighing again, he pulled the broken end off, tossed it into the pile of the others and tried again. Maybe he should see if he could get some yoga in, he needed to calm down. And crying at night didn't seem to be helping either.

***

Stork grasped the controls tightly in his hands and kept his ship safely hidden in the clouds. Talons would pop out of nowhere, anywhere and anytime. He and Junko had scrounged together a longer ranged radar array, and his eyes would dart from it to scan the skies. More than once it had alerted them just in time. Hearing a noise behind him he turned to look and found only the scruffy rodent, who was now looking through one of the spyscopes. At least it took its job seriously. In turning back, Stork's eyes had passed over a portrait that still hung on the wall. Aerrow had refused Stork's attempt to take it down. Stork had shrugged, but still. It just cluttered up the wall, and what reason was there to keep it? The person who had hung it there in all of his immodesty, was gone. Stork shook his head. He also couldn't believe they hadn't removed any of the guy's stuff, keeping his room the way it was. As if the blond would return. Nope, Finn was gone. Undoubtedly to a horrible demise. Best to make the best of it and move on, go forward. There were plenty of things about the here and now to worry about.

So why did he feel so bad? And why did he search the skies for something other than the enemy?

***

Starling put down the radio and frowned. She had hoped to have heard something by now. But there had been no reports of a lone teenager, riding a skimmer with a guitar on his back. Not even the operatives deep within Cyclonia had sent word of someone matching that description being brought to any of the prison terras. And she was sure if one of the members of the Storm Hawks had been captured, he would have been paraded about by the Talons by now. She laid her forehead into the palm of her hand and rested there. Even though she and Aerrow had talked long, she still felt to blame. She knew that Finn had left because of her. True, it had been a childish, selfish, petty thing to do, but she understood the emotions behind it, if not the rational.

If it weren't for the current ramp-up of attacks, she'd take off herself and look for him. She had received one small bit of information from an operative that was to the northwest, about a young blond that was seen up there. There had been scant little more intelligence, but it had been the only thing she had to go on. She was worried. She had heard about the land and its people, that refugees were crossing over the border and taxing the area's resources, causing the locals to become surly and guarded. She had once thought to go there, check out the region, but one mission after another had kept her from doing so. And now there was no option. To leave now would take away one more member, making the Storm Hawks even more vulnerable than they were already.

Still, the minute the hostilities died down, she would go.

***

Radarr chattered to himself. Ever since the blond had left, things had fallen apart. All of them, but especially his master, seemed to have the light taken out of their eyes. Maybe a part of it was all the fighting, but he knew a lot of it had to do with how worried they were. Radarr shook his head. He was worried too. Friends stayed together, that's what friends were for. More you had around you the safer you were. Less chance of getting attacked in your nest at night, easier to forage during the day, better results when hunting. Nobody but the silly or the suicidal went off on their own, well, unless you were dying. And the blond one was certainly silly. But he had never seemed to be that silly and definitely not suicidal. And he hadn't given off any whiff of sickness. So why had he gone? Because he had been feeling sad, Aerrow had said. But that's when you stayed, because friends helped you feel better.

Big ones were strange.


	6. Chapter 6

Finn's luck is running out, and thing's are beginning to look very bleak...

A/N when I posted this story, didn't realize this chapter was going to land on Thanksgiving (for all us USofA'ers). So as you read this, stuffed to the gills (as I am) just give a small thanks and go back for that second piece of pie...

Chapter 6

Finn bit into the apple, savoring every bite. He fully planned to eat it until nothing was left but the stem, swallowing even the seeds. He seriously doubted he'd be eating again in the near future. He was dead broke. Spent his last two coins on breakfast that morning, and had managed to pilfer the apple he was eating when walking around the market, drooling over all the things he couldn't buy. Once more he went over his plan to break into the garage, steal his skimmer and go roaring off into the sky. It was a nice distraction from his real problems. Like finding a place to sleep tonight. The locals frowned on people settling down in doorways, or park benches or under stairwells. Finn avoided being hauled into the local jail at all costs.

He had no intention, at least a serious one of stealing his skimmer and leaving the terra he was on. Not that the idea wasn't foremost on his mind. He wanted nothing more than to be quit of this place, the entire Norwessenlun for that matter. But even if he did manage to get away from this one would just mean landing on another, with the same set of problems. Worse, since he no longer had the money to pay for the landing fee. He might as well just walk up to the sheriff and hit him in the face. At least he'd be thrown in a cell for a legitimate reason.

As he stood there he debated his options – he could sell his clothes, but he doubted public nudity would be looked upon favorably, or he could sell his skimmer, but that was a big fat no. Even if it cost him a million in gold to get his ride out of debt, he'd never sell it. He supposed he could try, once again, to find somebody that would hire him, even if it was to clean out every garbage chute in town. But he knew that was as unlikely as him selling his skimmer. Help wanted signs became scarce when they learned you were one of 'them'.

He thought of signing up on one of the tourist liners that made their way through the area, stopping at terra after terra. But he had talked to one of the refugees that had managed to escape from his service on one, who had told him it was worse, ten times worse than being in jail. That they worked you to death, barely fed you, barely paid you as most of your check went to 'food and lodging' and you were lucky to see the sky once a week. They practically locked you up when the ships went into port. The guy had finally snuck out through one of the engine exhaust tubes, and even though he was more broke than before he signed up, he felt himself incredibly lucky. Finn had taken the tale with a grain of salt, until he had seen a wanted poster with the guy's face on it, charged with 'dereliction of duty' and the name of the cruise line.

Finn glanced at the setting sun and began to walk toward the seedier side of town. As he walked he used the small stem to brush at his teeth. He had run out of toothpaste and there was no way he could afford the incredibly exorbitant prices that was charged for even the basic necessities. He no longer wore his hair up, keeping it back out of his eyes with a hat he had found once digging through a trash can, as his hair gel had also ran out some time ago. He wished now that he had packed up an entire crate of hygienic supplies. Not only would he be a lot cleaner (one could only wash up so much in public bathrooms) but he would have gotten rich selling the stuff on the black market.

As Finn stepped into the darker alleys that made up the more unsightly side of town, he kept a sharp look out. The people that populated this area were like him, mostly refugees and just as desperate. He'd been attacked often, his youth and slight stature deceiving his assailants into thinking him easier prey. So far he'd managed to come out unscathed, his training keeping him from being overtaken. But that didn't mean he could just saunter down the road like he owned the place. There were those who did, and they would take mighty offense at someone stepping on their turf. Finn had found it best to keep as low a profile as he could.

Not long ago he would have laughed if someone told him that he would be like this, starving, sneaking down dark streets, stealing his food and sleeping in hollows carved out of packing crates and thrown out trash. He'd gone a long way from who he had been. He had a feeling he would go much further.


	7. Chapter 7

On the other side of the world, the future is looking different...

A/N Very short chapter, but I'll update first thing tomorrow. I promise.

Chapter 7 -

Bells rang out on the terra of Atmosia as the people danced in the streets. After many months of hard fighting, they were finally winning the war. Even though Cyclonia's seemingly endless resources had churned out enemy fleet after enemy fleet, reports were coming in that many of the refineries and ship yards were being abandoned, lying vacant and unused. No longer did the Talons come swooping out of the sky in enormous squadrons, backed up by battle cruisers in such huge amounts and size that they practically blotted out the sky. Now the cowards struck in small hit and runs, doing little damage before streaking back to their bases, tails between their legs.

The reports of small revolts had become not only true, but there had been a very large rebellion that had freed almost a good thirty percent of Cyclonia from its clutches, with the population of several good sized terras instantly pledging allegiance to Atmosian rule, denouncing Master Cyclonis. Several of the rogue terras were also switching loyalty as well, seeing the writing on the wall. Terra Bogaton was found to be deserted, with no sign of Repton and his followers.

But what had put the inhabitants in such a jolly mood was the incredible news that after so many long years, the traitorous Dark Ace had been vanquished and was residing even now in the most secure cell on Atmos, waiting his sentencing and eventual punishment. And the ones to thank for that were the wondrous Storm Hawks, who had defeated the Dark Ace and had brought him to justice.

Within the celebrating crowd were six of the wondrous Storm Hawks, each one doing their best to act humble while accepting accolade after accolade. No longer were they thought of as just children. They had become the true heroes of the war, making the impossible possible through their courage, daring and conviction. They had caused the other Sky Knights to keep fighting when all seemed lost, they had rallied the troops and put hope into the hearts of people everywhere, even in the midst of darkness. If it hadn't been for them, Atmos would have been swallowed up by now.

And each one thought, both privately and among themselves, that one of their number should have been there, celebrating with them. He would not have been so humble, they knew that for certain.


	8. Chapter 8

Okay.

At the beginning of this story I said it would get dark. This is it. I mean it. Not joking. I may have stepped over a boundary, and if I've upset any sensabilities I apologize. My intention is to tell a story in which a person has to take whatever means necessary to survive. Finn's at the edge, his life is all about survival at this point.

But though I may visit the land of desperation, I don't live there, so hang on. After all, it's darkest before dawn, as they say...

Chapter 8 -

Finn stepped down off the stairs leading to his residence and stretched. Looking up at the darkening sky, he knew it was time to get to work. Checking his pockets to make sure he had his supplies with him, he turned and walked down the street toward the glowing lights of the town. If all went well he would make enough to put some more into his bank, the nailed-down can he kept hidden deep inside the one closet in the tiny two room apartment. He had enough to get his bike out, but not enough to get him from terra to terra and finally out of this storm begotten hole of a quadrant. Granted he could make money doing what he had found would sustain him. But once he had shaken the dust of this crappy place from his boots, he wanted nothing to do with any of it. Especially what he had been driven to do.

He reached a relatively well lit corner and leaned against the wall behind him. In no time at all he was approached by the first of his customers. A whispered exchange, a nod of confirming and he and his customer walked together to a nearby convenience store. One by one they slipped into the empty bathroom, locked the door and got down to business.

Finn had resisted taking this route. Had resisted it with all the strength he had. But when one was shivering in the cold of winter, snow blowing around you as you huddled near a steaming grate, he had looked at the money that was offered him by some guy from the better area of town and had given in. It wasn't the first time he'd been propositioned. His youth, blond hair, blue eyes and slight frame had caused many men to come up to him, whisper to him what they wanted him to do, how much they would pay him to do it. He had always refused, usually with an angry and disgusted look on his face.

But his options had run out. Unless he wanted to be a drug runner for one of the local mobsters. And even though Finn had few lines left that he hadn't crossed, that one was sacred. He was not going to add to the misery of others. Even at the expense of being totally miserable himself.

He shook his head and stepped out of the bathroom, earning a glare from the owner. Finn flipped him a coin and smirked. The guy got a cut, what was he complaining about? Palming a candy bar just to get back at the dude, Finn left the building and walked back to his usual spot. He nodded at the girl, woman really, across the street. They kept an eye out for each other, making sure they returned in a fairly prompt manner, alerting the other whenever a cop or gang would show up, trying to stir up trouble. She had once offered to do him free of charge, but Finn had declined. That was something that no longer interested him. Gone was his once all encompassing desire to get with some hot babette. The only girls he ever saw any more were either the snobby brats of the natives or the down on their luck immigrants like him.

He had actually taken one of those refugees in once. Nothing had happened between them, stars, but she was barely twelve. He had found her crying on a street corner, sporting a bloody lip and a swelling eye from an encounter gone wrong. She had looked at him suspiciously at first, then went along with him reluctantly as he led her back to his apartment where he had let her clean herself up. She hadn't taken a shower in so long she wasn't sure how to work the controls. He had to show her the difference between soap and shampoo. He had given her one of his shirts to wear, her clothes so worn and filthy that washing them would have dissolved them. Then he had fixed her something to eat and told her to get some sleep; that he would go out and get her some new clothes.

When he had returned he was surprised to see her still there, fully expecting her to rob him blind and disappear. She had looked at the shopping bag he held out to her, and then she had walked to his bed, stripped off his shirt and laid down. Finn had wanted to cry.

It had taken a long time to convince her that he was just helping her. She didn't understand why he wouldn't let her go out on the street and earn money; didn't he want her help? Finn had told her about his plan to go back to the other side, but she had just looked at him like he was crazy. He realized that she didn't remember being brought over, that she had been very young when her family had escaped the war. She barely recalled being separated from them, only knew she had lived on the streets for years. It was her life; it was all she had ever known, after all, she was one of the refuse; there was no golden land for her. Nor for him either, he was just like her. Dreams were for sleeping, not to be indulged in.

Finn had tried to teach her, laughing to himself bitterly as he realized he'd become a lecturer, trying to fill her head with facts and details about the history of Atmos. He even tried to teach her to read and write, but she had just shrugged. She knew the price of things and she could find her way around, she didn't need to know all that fancy stuff. She was never going to be hoighty-toighty, like them ladies in town. Finn never felt so old. Even though he was only a couple of years older, he felt like there was an enormous gap between her and him.

As such he wasn't surprised when the changing seasons brought warmer weather and he woke to find her gone. She had left a drawing of a stick figure boy and girl, with hearts around it. He folded it up and stuffed it into the thin opening of his can bank.


	9. Chapter 9

Is that a glimmer of light on the far horizon...

Chapter 9 -

Starling flew off, her face set. This was the third terra in the Norwessenluns she had checked and each one was beginning to anger her more and more. She realized why the inhabitants were the way they were, resources were slim on Atmos, and the steady influx of refugees had strained the few inhabitable terras to the limit, but still... Had they never heard of human kindness? Did they have to charge for everything, even useless information? At this rate, she'd find Finn, if at all, when both of them were old and grey.

She wondered why she had refused the help of her fellow Stormhawks. She had given Aerrow the excuse that the rumor of Finn having gone into the northwest was chancy at best and she was just going to check it out, no need for all of them to make the trip. She had convinced him that staying closer to home was much better, that with the end of the war so close in sight that it made more sense. Just in case Finn came back. Or something like that.

She knew why she was doing this. Why she had to do this.

Starling began to bypass the locals and talk to the refugees, visiting camp after slum after shanty town. Each time she grew more and more angry with the desperate situation she found the people in. She couldn't believe that the locals would actually allow fellow citizens to live like that. As soon as she got back to Atmosia proper, she was going to organize the biggest flotilla of rescue ships ever seen. She also entertained the notion of sending a few of the captured Cyclonian battleships and blowing some of the more noxious terras to bits, but she knew she would never follow through with it. She was also going to make a full report to the Sky Council on her findings and see if perhaps there might be some way of bringing justice through diplomatic means. She still favored the blowing up to bits part though.

As she made to leave the latest camp she was approached by a shy girl, barely in her teens. The girl had heard of her search and told Starling of a guy she had met who just might be the one she was searching for. He had seemed more decent than most and he was certainly blue eyed and blond. And yes, his name was Finn. Starling asked the girl to write down the name of the terra she had known him on and gotten a blank stare. She also received a blank stare when she asked for directions. The girl had indicated toward a sort of that away point and told her what she thought had been the name of the terra. As Starling swung aboard her skimmer, the girl had run up to her and told her that if she did find Finn, to tell him she was sorry for leaving and that she wanted him to know she knew how much he had tried to help her. Starling assured her that she would.

***

Aerrow paced on the deck of the Condor, wishing something would happen. Wished somebody would make a decision. Wished somebody would make a move.

Wished he would hear from Starling.

But she had disappeared as thoroughly as Finn had. Nothing had been heard, either directly from her or any of her operatives, passing down a message. It had been almost three weeks now and Aerrow was nearly beside himself. An answer, any answer would do.

He and the other Sky Knights, those that had carriers, had taken up surveillance points around the main spire of Cyclonia itself. They had maintained the blockade for some time now, just waiting for somebody to blink first. So far the staring contest was a draw. They had seen small squadrons of Talons, two or three ships leave the many towered terra and circle round it once or twice, but they had never approached the encircling ring of carriers. No response was given to their repeated radio messages, no sign was given that Cyclonia even acknowledged their presence.

Though they all wished to attack, there was no telling what abilities Master Cyclonis still had up her sleeve. For that matter, they weren't sure if the young witch was still in her black tower. Nothing had been heard or seen of her in some time. The small party of diplomats had sat on the landing strip for hours and then had returned, their message of reconciliation coupled with full surrender on Cyclonia's part had been ignored as if they hadn't been there.

Stopping his pacing long enough to peer through a scope, Aerrow scowled. If something didn't happen and soon, he was going to burst.

***

Piper sat in the left hand side of the couch and watched the red-headed Sky Knight with shared sympathy. She too was sick of this inactivity. At least it had given her the opportunity to work some more on her invention, fine tuning the enhancing crystals even more. She was still amazed, though a bit immodest - after all who in Atmosia knew so much about crystals than her – that she had stumbled across a way of tuning the crystals to such a high intensity frequency. It had made all the difference in the world. Outfitting the Sky Knight squadrons with the more powerful crystals had given them increased weapon and engine power, enabling them to overcome the larger ships and overwhelming numbers of Talons that had been streaming out of Cyclonia at a rapid pace. More than once the Condor had broken its new speed record as it roared across the sky toward another battle front.

As she sat there self congratulating herself she suddenly felt a bit self conscious. She turned her head and gazed on the portrait of Finn that hung on the wall. She smiled a little as she mentally heard what she was sure he would say to her. Whatever. She sighed and looked out across the dark red skies. She missed him. She had hoped that Starling would find him soon, but with each passing day she felt more and more despondent. Had he disappeared for good? Had he been swallowed up by the world, never to be seen again? She never thought she would see a day in which she wished she could hear him playing that awful strident music of his, but she would gladly embrace having nails scraped down a chalkboard to never seeing the sly, impudent, annoying, blonde teen again. She hadn't realized just how much she missed arguing with him. Nor how funny he really could be, the dry sarcastic comments he would make. And it wasn't as if he wasn't brave, how many times had he gotten that intense look on his face right before pulling off an amazing shot? Piper shook her head. Never knew how much something was worth until it was gone.

***

Junko hummed happily as he stared out the large bridge window. Soon. He just knew it. Soon everything would be alright and everything would be back to normal. Oh, and the war would be over soon, too. But best of all, he'd have his best buddy in the whole world back. He just knew it. He could feel it, deep down inside him. It was kind of like when he got the sneezes when Murk Raiders or Sky Sharks were nearby, but different. The tingly feeling was inside of him. Junko couldn't wait until he saw Finn again. He would run up to the blond and just sweep him up. And then he would run up to the very top of the ship and sing the loudest, longest Wallopian Folk Roar he knew. Then he would run back down and hug Finn some more. Oh, he was so happy. He couldn't help it, he started to dance in place to his humming. Soon, he just knew it.

***

Stork could no longer tell which eye was twitching more, his left or right. Any time now. He was sure of it. Either the order would come over the loud speaker to attack, thereby sealing their doom or the Talons would attack, thereby sealing their doom. Just a matter of time.

He stared at the silent dark tower, fully expecting it to explode into deadly shards, ripping them all to pieces, sending them spiraling down to the wasteland. He also fully expected Master Cyclonis to appear, riding the air on bat wings and striking them all dead with some terrifying death ray. Yup, they were all doomed. Well, maybe not all. Starling had managed to get away. But then she surely had followed Finn to the same doom that had claimed him, flying into a suddenly erupting volcano or being attacked by a swarm of killer ladybugs. He'd heard that the little insects could inflict great painful bites. He shivered as a cold hand twisted his insides. Yes, they had been the lucky ones.

***

Radarr had tired of riding on his master's shoulder as the young teen had turned this way and that, and finally hopped off and sat down near the dark skinned girl. He wished somebody would realize that it was way past lunch time. He was hungry. He also wished everybody would calm down, no need to get all upset. His master and teammates had gone from one extreme to the other these past weeks, first being all depressed over the hordes of attacking enemy and then euphoric over their sudden victories. He could have told them things would have turned out all right. Even though he was a little sad that the other green eyed one had left, but then she was searching for the blue eyed one. He hoped she found him. Everybody should be together. It wasn't right for friends to be apart. He looked around him at the remaining four and took in each one's different moods.

They sure were strange.


	10. Chapter 10

Things just have to get better, don't they?

A/N - reposted the chapter, had it #11, instead of #10. Didn't want to cause any more confusion!!!

Chapter 10 -

Finn yawned as he walked back to his apartment. The night had been a good one, he easily had enough to pay his rent and utilities, stock up on some food and add to his growing savings. Any day now, just a little bit more and he'd be gone. His luck just had to last a little bit longer. The authorities were beginning to crack down more and more on the refugees, blaming them for the higher crime rate. Well maybe if they had helped the immigrants instead of shoving them to the side, treating them like unwanted pests, then maybe the more disaffected wouldn't need to steal and rob to survive. And those like him wouldn't have to do what they did. He'd managed to stay away on those nights that he'd heard rumors of a crack down and so far hadn't been caught. The woman he'd shared a corner with for the longest time had been taken away screaming about who would take care of her children. He never did find out what happened to her.

As Finn walked along he studied the faces around him, of those going home and those starting their day. A part of him looked for the young girl, hoping that maybe she'd return some day, but she hadn't. He also kept an eye out for those he knew to be undercover police or worse, gang members of the local mobster. Though the gangsters were keeping to themselves more and were no longer seen out and about, terrorizing all the population. Finn still kept his tribute money in a small envelope, though it was three days late from when it was usually collected. There were some days he wished he'd brought his crossbow with him. Though he knew he would have probably hocked it long ago.

He nodded to the grocer who was just setting up his stand for the day, waited till the man brought out the freshly baked bread delivered by the baker. He bought a small loaf and a few pieces of fruit, and munched on one as he walked on. His eyes glanced over at a young woman standing in a doorway who seemed to be surveying the crowd. He took in her dark purplish hair and as she turned he saw, he saw…

She had green eyes. And they stared back at him.

***

Starling would have missed him if he hadn't come to a complete halt and just stood there, staring at her. As it was she studied him for a long moment. His hair was certainly blond, but it was much longer and hung down, partially obscuring his face. And the eyes that peered at her were the same amazing shade of blue that she remembered. But the rest of him…

Skinny, downright bony. The tattered clothes he wore hung on his frame. His skin was pale, as if it hadn't been in the sunlight for a very long time. He stood with a slight crouch, not the cocky, self assured stance he used to have, with his shoulders back and his legs apart, balanced. He looked like the slightest breeze would blow him down the street. She moved slowly toward him, as if approaching a wild creature that would turn and bolt at any second. As she neared him she watched as his slack mouth closed, his throat swallowing. His lips parted, silently formed her name. As she stood in front of him, she softly said his name.

He stared back at her, his eyes never leaving hers, but his body still showed every sign of turning and running away. Gently she reached out and touched him on the shoulder. She could feel his slight jump as she made contact. He suddenly closed his eyes, held them closed for the longest time. Upon opening them again, he gave her the smallest of smiles and relaxed. With a gesture he preceded her down the street, leading them toward a dingy building. After climbing several sets of stairs he unlocked a door and stood aside, allowing her to enter first. All though the walls needed painting and the carpeting had seen much better days, the small place was exceptionally clean. The few pieces of furniture shone, the counter to the left of the tiny closet gleamed, the sink – barely big enough to fit a small plate and a glass – sparkled. His bed was made up tight, the pillow fluffed up as much as it could be. Even the windows, at least on this side, were streak free. The glance she had given into the bathroom when she first entered had revealed it to be the same way.

Sitting down in the only chair as Finn offered it to her, she watched as he pulled a clean plate, the only plate, out of the cupboard and began to slice both the bread and the fruit up. Reaching into the smallest refrigerator she'd ever seen, he pulled out a bottle of juice and poured it into a spot free glass. He carried the plate and glass over to her and set them down on the table next to her. He then went and sat on his bed.

Starling was well aware that he had just offered her his breakfast. And most likely his lunch and dinner, too. As she ate, she observed him out of the corner of his eye. He was looking everywhere but at her. She could see the look of disdain on his face, knew it wasn't for her. Finishing the slice of bread and two pieces of fruit she indicated she was done. Finn looked at the still full plate and made to put it away, but stopped as she told him she was sure he was hungry and that he should eat. Getting up from the chair she went to stand by the window and gazed down at the narrow street. Hearing him finish, she turned and watched as he took what was left and carefully wrapped it up, storing it into the refrigerator, and then washing the dishes, drying them immediately and replacing them into the cupboards. Wiping his hands on the towel, he turned to her and once more gave the slightest of smiles. As she walked toward him, he looked over his shoulder and told her he would really like to take a shower, he was…dirty. She nodded and went back to looking out the window.

As she heard the door close, she leaned her head against the cool glass. She had found him. So why wasn't she ecstatic? And why did he look at her like she was the hunter, and he the prey?

***

Finn stepped under the hot water and soaped up quickly. Not that he was in a hurry to finish, but heated water was in short supply and never lasted long enough. Many times he'd finished rinsing in ice cold water. As he washed, his mind whirled, trying to grasp the implications of what had just occurred.

Of all the people he had ever thought to see again, Starling was last on his list. Especially here. And there could be only one reason for her being in this place. She had been looking for him. To bring him back? To take him to task for leaving? And was she the only one here, or were the others also nearby? Even though the water still had heat to it, he felt a chill go through him. Please, let it only be her. He wouldn't be able to face the others, not as he was now, not what he'd…become. Finn shivered, then realized that the water was beginning to cool off. He quickly finished and turned off the water, stepping out of the narrow shower. Grabbing the threadbare towel off the rickety bar, he dried himself off. He brushed his teeth, taking his time because he enjoyed it, especially now he could afford both toothbrush and toothpaste. Amazing what things that you once thought commonplace could suddenly become important. Picking up his comb he started to brush his hair forward, and then stopped. He stared at himself in the mirror for the longest time, then he abruptly, almost defiantly brushed his hair back, away from his face. He no longer felt like hiding. He'd been found.


	11. Chapter 11

Of course things get better. I told you I only visit the land of despair...

Chapter 11 -

They talked long through the day, even though Finn yawned a lot. She had asked if he would like to go to sleep, but he had said no. When asked what he did for a living that caused him to work nights, he had lied and said he was a security guard for a warehouse outside of town. Starling had nodded, seemingly satisfied.

He learned of what had happened down below for the last several months. She told him of the war and how it had at first seemed lost. But then one thing happened after another and suddenly it was the other way around, the Cyclonians were running from them. She spoke of how the Cyclonian territories had erupted into revolution after revolution and that as of when she had left, only the terras surrounding Cyclonia proper were still in enemy lands. She informed him as to how most of the rogue states had switched sides, even fought together during the last of the battles. Nothing still had been seen about the Raptors, though she had heard a story about how they had gone to work for the Colonel, but had also heard that he had chased them away, their tails between their legs, threatening to pull those very tails off if they showed up again.

She also told him about the great battle that had ended with the defeat of the Dark Ace at the hand of Aerrow. It was one of the largest battles yet, with wave after wave of Talons in the sky. The Storm Hawks had been joined with every Sky Knight out there, including the new junior squadrons. She related how during the battle the Dark Ace and Aerrow had met time and again, only to be separated when the Dark Ace managed to evade Aerrow, make his escape. Until finally Aerrow had caught up to the Dark Ace.

Starling related how the two of them had leapt from skimmer to skimmer, blades swinging the whole entire time. Up, down, back and forth they had fought across the sky. The longer they fought, the fiercer they got. The battle had taken on an almost surreal edge to it, with squadron after squadron stopping their own fight to watch the incredible duel. Every time it seemed one or the other would get the upper hand, the one who was almost trapped managed to break free, but not enough to escape completely. The few times the combatants had moved near enough to Starling to see their faces, she said their eyes blazed so brightly that it was as if they had crystals embedded into their sockets. Never had she seen faces so ferocious as the Dark Ace's and Aerrow's. Just as everyone thought the battle between the two was going to last until eternity, the unthinkable happened. Aerrow lost his balance and fell, landing on the back of a nearby Talon's skimmer. Unhurt but with his breath knocked out of him, he was incapable of moving fast enough to evade the Dark Ace as the older man had jumped down, throwing the resident Talon off his ride. The entire audience had held its breath as the glowing red blade was held within a hair's breadth at the young Sky Knight's throat.

And then Radarr, good old Radarr had come out of nowhere and had thrown a chicken of all things right at the Dark Ace's head, knocking the man clean off the skimmer. So quickly did it happen that the Dark Ace had been taken by complete surprise, and had not been able to open his jet wings in time to avoid smacking into a nearby spire, ending up with a broken leg and his weapon lost. This time it was Aerrow's blue blades that were held to a throat. The Dark Ace had sneered at Aerrow, told him that he had finally become a worthy opponent, just as good as he was, that only the victor lived and asked if Aerrow would show no mercy. Aerrow had raised both blades, and then snapped them to the latches on his back. He had looked proudly back at his nemesis and told him that he was not him, would never be like him.

Of everything that had happened, that was the real turning point in the war. The remaining Talon forces had become so flustered by the defeat of their supposedly unbeatable leader that they were quickly routed, many of them being captured. Stork had driven the Condor right up to a Cyclonian Battleship, stood nose to nose with it and told it to surrender or else. The Cyclonian commander had practically ran out of the bridge waving a white flag. When the Atmosian forces had taken it over, they found it had been armed to the teeth, its cannons more than capable of blowing the Condor to smithereens. Stork had turned blue at the news and had needed a twelve hour session with his Trance helmet. He had gotten the ship mixed up with a battle cruiser that had been severely damaged during the first part of the battle and was unable to fight.

She also told how Ravess and Snipe had shown up at the very doors of the Sky Council, pleading for sanctuary. They had been given it all right. Nice, safe, five by five cells. And no, Ravess was not allowed to play her violin.

Finn both laughed and cheered as Starling related the news to him. Of all the things that had bothered him most about leaving his friends, was the thought that they would suffer because of it. On the contrary, they seemed to have gotten along quite well without him. Sobering at the thought, he had looked inquiringly at Starling. He took a deep breath and asked her the one question that had been burning inside him all day.

Why was she here?


	12. Chapter 12

They may have found each other, but they still have a lot more to discover...

Chapter 12 -

Starling looked back at him, and then asked him the same thing.

He frowned at her. He was here because here was where he had ended up. Lost in this blight of a place, far away from anything even remotely resembling civilization. He'd run away, remember? Left because he'd been stupid, a moron, an idiotic child, no – an infant, with less brains than one. He turned away from her, his eyes staring down at one of the many spots on the worn carpet. Raising his eyes he saw that the afternoon sun was slanting into the window. He stood up and stepped over to the refrigerator, pulled out the plate of food he had put away so long ago. Sitting back down he picked at the food. Starling ate with him, neither saying a word. When the plate was empty he made a move to clean up, but she placed a hand on his wrist. Finn sat back down.

Speaking so softly that she had to bend close to hear him, he told her why he had left, that he had been so jealous of her newfound relationship with his friends that he had felt first threatened, then abandoned. He knew that was wrong, he saw clearly now that it had been his nearsightedness, his misperceptions. He raised his face up and looked at her shyly, asking for her forgiveness. He had hurt her, he had been mean and he hoped she would at least say she understood. Starling not only said she understood, but that of course she forgave him. She had forgiven him long ago. Finn smiled back at her.

Still speaking low, he then went on to tell her how he had gone from terra to terra, how he had arrived at this area, going deeper and deeper into debt until he no longer had anything but the clothes on his back and a highly mortgaged skimmer. He told her of the bitter winter he had spent, stealing from others barely better off from him. Of how he had hated himself for victimizing victims.

He held himself silent after that, staring unseeingly at a small shaft of light slanting in through a break in the curtains, ever present dust motes floating in uncharted patterns. His body began to shake as he sat on his bed, the chair with her in it pulled up close to him. Abruptly he stood up and walked to the window, leaning his head against it. He whispered so low that Starling couldn't catch what he said. Standing up she crossed over to stand to one side of him, her hand gently placed on his shoulder. She softly asked him to repeat what he had just said. Without turning toward her he whispered just as low, but this time she caught the words.

I'm not a night watchman. I go out every night and sell myself, were the words he murmured.

Starling stood there, stunned. She knew his circumstances were hard, very hard, but for him to have been driven to take that route? She did the only thing she could do. She took him by the shoulders and turned his resisting body around until he faced her. Then she wrapped him in a long, hard hug. At first his body remained stiff and unyielding but gradually it relaxed. She felt first one, then another sob as he slowly broke down. Within moments he was crying, his entire frame shaking from the force of his outbursts. She held on tight, rubbing his back and shoulders, swaying with him, murmuring soft words of comfort.

Finally he calmed down enough to stand back from her, his expression embarrassed. She smiled back reassuringly. Finn sighed deeply and returned to sit on the bed. Starling sat next to him, one arm around his shoulder. He began to speak again, telling her he did it not just to survive, but because…because it was all he was good for. He had sunk to the lowest possible point a person could go. The only thing that had been left to him was to throw himself off the nearest edge. But with his luck, he'd probably just break a leg or something and lay there for ages.

Starling asked him why he thought he had deserved the kind of life he found himself in. Finn responded that it was because he had betrayed them, betrayed her. That he was unworthy, that he had thrown away all the best things in his life - for what? For a stupid, selfish, childish act of jealousy. He had snuck away like a dog, thinking that he had been hurt, that he had been wronged. Finn snorted mirthlessly. He hadn't known what wrong was. Wrong was eating scraps out of garbage cans, wrong was begging for an old barely glowing heating crystal that somebody was going to smash because it was no longer usable. Wrong was having to go out night after night, letting others do unspeakable things to you so you could make enough money to pay off the ever increasing boarding fees so that someday you could fly away from here. Wrong was having a plan that didn't go from there, just away. Because you were too dumb, and too stupid and too idiotic to figure out anything better. Because you never were anything special, you were just some kid who happened to have an ability to aim and you just happened to have friends that saw some kind of potential in you, even if you were dumb, stupid and idiotic. Along with being a jerk and a moron.

Starling sat there as Finn degraded himself. She knew he was trying to justify his current situation, making it seem as if he'd gotten what he had deserved, paying the price for his rash actions. She understood. Hadn't she kept herself away from others because she had thought it was what she deserved? Since she was alone, that it was for the best to stay that way? That if she never got close to anybody, she'd never lose them, never hurt again? It was amazing the things one could talk themselves into doing, the odd logic that made so much sense, even when it was the worst thing a person could do.

As the sun began to sink, she was the one to talk low, telling him how she had felt when she had joined up with his squadron, her fears and her joy. She told him how she had blamed herself for his leaving, causing him to rear back and stare at her. He listened quietly as she spoke of how they had looked for him, smiling as she mentioned they had searched Vapos first, because of his haphazard clues. That Aerrow and the others had wanted nothing more than to tear the entire planet apart looking for him. How worried they had all been, yes angry at first, but also feeling sorry. They had not known just how hurt Finn had become. No matter what the reasons behind Finn's actions, the emotions were real and should have been acknowledged. Instead everybody had just treated Finn as if he had been in the wrong. They had all been in the wrong.

That was why she was here. Not just to find him, not just to bring him back. But to atone for causing the hurt in the first place. She should have known better, she was older after all, but obviously not wiser. Perhaps her long estrangement from others was to blame, but she should have realized that she had come between him and his best friend, that she had overstepped her bounds.

Finn tried to counter, to reaffirm that it was his fault, nobody else's. She began to argue back, that no, she was the one who had done wrong. Finn started to glare at her, why wouldn't she understand, he had gotten into this mess. He was the one who had left, writing that silly note, leaving his stuff behind, taking his guitar with him thinking he was going to become some kind of rock star, be all famous and rub his friend's faces in it. Nyaah, you guys are just Storm Hawks, but look at me – I've got legions of fans. I'm rich, I'm a celebrity, I'm better than any of you.

Starling matched his fierce look with one of her own. Don't he dare tell her who's to blame. If she hadn't joined up, he wouldn't be here, half starved and living a horrible life. He'd still be with his friends, and he would be famous, and for being a Storm Hawk. Instead his friends were worried about him, hoping that he was alright, praying that he wasn't hurt. They had all wanted to come with her, but she had needed to do this herself. It wasn't their fault he had left, she had been the one to drive a wedge between him and them.

They glowered at each other, both certain to the depth of their bones that they were right, the other wrong. They might have sat there forever, trading looks of fury, except for two things. Finn yawned and Starling's stomach rumbled. At the same time.

Both of them looked at each other in surprise. And suddenly burst out laughing. As quick as that the antagonism each had felt was gone as both realized that the other was trying to fix the blame squarely on their own shoulders. It had been a short but sharp contest of wills as neither one wanted to give up the lower hand. They sat together, their arms wrapped around shoulder or waist and chuckled at themselves.


	13. Chapter 13

And as far as the other's fortunes?

A/N Quick little chapter, I know, but we don't want to leave Finn and Starling for very long, do we?

Chapter 13 -

The war was over. Done. Finished. Cyclonia had been taken, the last and final battle over before it had even really began. The order for invasion had been given, after days of calling, beseeching the silent inhabitants of the dark tower to give up, surrender, to give themselves over to justice before it was too late. As the gathered Atmosian squadrons landed one by one on the many landing strips, they found no resistance. The labyrinth of hallways and tunnels were empty, silent, deserted. Upon gaining the top-most tower, they found the machine Master Cyclonis used to blend her variations of crystal energy smashed to pieces.

But of Master Cyclonis there was nothing to be found. In one of the storerooms far underground they found a small contingent of Talons, none of them officers, getting very drunk on various bottles of liqueur and wine. Upon sobering them up they found that they were the last, ordered to stay there to make it seem like the tower was still defended. They had taken turns making short flights outside, until it was obvious that they were left there. They had no idea where the others had gone. They had been called into a room, given their orders, told to wait there till a certain hour and then fulfill their duties.

After lengthy debate, it was decided to destroy the citadel of evil. Though there were some who protested, who begged to be allowed to study the place and learn its secrets. Not to mention plunder its riches. They were outvoted.

Five eyes watched from a safe distance. Five fingers hovered over a button. Five minds wondered if this really was an honor. Five hands dropped at once. Five faces turned away from the horrific blast.

The war was over. But none of them really believed that safety had returned. Somewhere their enemy hid, licking its wounds until strong enough to rise again. And they would be waiting.

But would all of them be waiting, together as they should be?


	14. Chapter 14

Finally, after the long dark of bitter night, the day breaks...

A/N What?! Two chapters in one day! Well, the last chapter was rather short, and I won't be able to post first thing tomorrow, so...enjoy!!

Chapter 14 -

Finn woke up, a smile on his face, knowing she was next to him. Of all the things that had happened to him, this was the one that took him by complete surprise. Life was good. They had moved out of that dingy rat hole of an apartment and lived here, a four room condo with master bathroom, deck off the dining room and a swimming pool within walking distance. It may not have been in the best part of town, but a quiet neighborhood that was nice and serene, with plenty of green space around it. He hadn't woken up to a screaming fight or the sound of someone crying for help in days. And he slept at night.

He wasn't sure why they stayed here. He had fully expected to leave the minute she had paid off his skimmer debt. Instead she had returned with him to his old apartment, gathered his meager possessions and then had told him she was going to find a better place to stay. He had been surprised but at the same time relieved. He wasn't sure if he was ready to go back just yet. Even though Starling had reassured him that his friends had wanted him back, it had been a long time. And he hadn't exactly left under great circumstances.

He also wasn't sure how she managed to pay for things. He hadn't seen bags of cash, but somehow she managed to pay not only his storage bill, but for this place and for all the food they'd been eating, along with new clothes for both of them. He had offered his savings, but she had shaken her head no, that he was to keep it for a stormy day.

As he lay there he kept recalling two of his most favorite days. The first one was when he had gotten his skimmer back. He had sat on it for the longest time. Starling had been beside him, astride her skimmer. She had looked at him with a soft smile and had asked if he wanted to go for a ride. He had smiled back and joked how he wasn't sure if he still remembered how to fly. She had grinned and told him she would try and catch him if he fell.

As soon as the ground fell away from under his wheels and the wings opened wide it was as if he had been reborn. Grinning madly he had swooped and dove and rolled and soared and raced. Never had anything felt so good. So right. Thumbing the switch to bring out the retractable crossbow inside the front compartment, he had put his eye to the sights and had taken aim at the terra below him. Fortunately the crystals in all of the bolts had gone dead, because he seriously had to hold back from shooting each and every one of them at the town. He would have stayed up there forever, but Starling had joined him after an hour and told him that the charge in his engines wouldn't last much longer. Reluctantly he had followed her back down.

Ever since then they had made a point of going out at least once a day and riding around the clouds, skimming over the surface of the terra, buzzing the town.

As Finn stretched a little he again felt her weight next to him. Which brought him to his other favorite day. It had been the same day in fact, after they had settled into their new living quarters. He had wondered why there was one bedroom, but perhaps that had been all she could afford. She had certainly been spending a lot of money. The couch looked comfy, was probably a lot softer than his old bed and he could easily sleep there. They had gone out for dinner, a splurge that had astounded him, but Starling said she wanted to test the stove first before she did any major cooking. He had been expecting some little diner, but she had pulled him into this fancy little bistro where she ordered wine and appetizers and steaks with all the trimmings and afterward had the waiter bring out one of each dessert. Finn's shrunken stomach had protested at its abuse, but he hadn't given it any quarter, kept stuffing it full until he thought he would burst. Never had food tasted so good. He wished he could eat it all again.

Eventually they had pushed away from the table with the last sip of after dinner coffee, along with an after dinner cordial. Finn practically waddled as he walked down the street, every so often hiccupping. He fully expected to be violently sick later in the evening. He was looking forward to it. It was wonderful to experience the opposite side of starving, to have your stomach complaining because it was too full.

They had collapsed on the couch together, sitting side by side. Finn closed his eyes, his body becoming sleepy from not only the food but also the tumultuous day. He wondered if this was what people felt like after winning great riches. One minute barely surviving, the next living the life of the rich and spoiled. He knew which one he preferred. He'd mulled that over for a bit. Less than twenty four hours ago he had been all set to live a life of penance, to subject to degradation in order to punish himself for something he thought he was at fault with.

And now he was ready to sit on his butt for the rest of his life, eat fine food and go for a flight whenever he felt like it. He knew he was resilient, but still…

Feeling Starling's arm go around him as he sat, he smiled and leaned toward her. She had saved him. And in some way, perhaps he had saved her. They both had become hurt from such a simple thing as joining forces, pushing each other apart instead of together. Well, at least he had. She had been an innocent bystander, shot in the crossfire. He hadn't been angry at her, well, yes he had been. But he realized now that he had been more angry at the others, for not seeing what Finn wouldn't show. It hadn't been to punish her that he had left. It had been to punish his friends. And especially his best friend, Aerrow.

Man, he was stupid.

And by doing so he had hurt her. Made her to feel at fault for his dumb reaction. Made her go looking for him. He owed her a lot. Starting tomorrow he would find some way to pay her back. Finn settled a little closer to her, laying his head against her shoulder. He thought it should be the other way around, wasn't the guy supposed to hold the girl? But he was comfy. She was stroking his hair and it felt really nice. His scalp was getting all tingly feeling. He felt her lips brush his forehead. She did it again, this time lingering for a bit.

Finn opened his eyes in sleepy confusion. She was kissing him. Flat out pressing her lips against his temple, his forehead, even the bridge of his nose. Raising his head to look at her, he found her green eyes regarding him with an expression he couldn't define. Her look was intense, burning with something he couldn't read. He'd never been looked at that way before. Almost as if she had a question, or a need that had to be answered. As if she had a desire…

Standing up she had held out her hand. Smiling down at him tenderly she told him in a soft voice that she wasn't going to hurt him, that she would never hurt him, that she had taken him away from that terrible world he had lived in and that he was never going back. That they were safe here and that it was just the two of them. That both of them had been hurt by the world and that each of them had survived it. And because of that hurt they had found themselves alone. And that she was tired of being alone and she was sure he was too.

He sat there and listened to her words. As she spoke the fear began to leave him. He understood exactly what she was saying. And he was tired of being alone. She was right, he had left that world behind. He had finally stepped back into the light, after a long dark self-imposed solitary confinement. And who but her knew more how it was to keep yourself alone, to shut doors and slide down bars and keep everybody out. Especially those who wanted to help you.

Finn raised his hand and took hold of hers. He didn't protest when she led him into the bedroom.

Sometime later he had given a thought to racing up to the highest point in Atmos and proclaiming himself a man, but decided it would take too long to get there. Much better to just stay here where it was nice and warm and she was with him.


	15. Chapter 15

And on the other side of the bed...

Chapter 15 -

Starling shifted and laid there, her eyes closed. She didn't have to open them to know he was lying beside her, one arm thrown over her. She knew why they hadn't left yet. One reason was because even though the hollows under his cheeks and temples were beginning to fill out, and his ribs and the knobs at his back were no longer protruding, his blue eyes still showed a haunted shadow within them. Gone were the dark marks under his eyes, his pale skin had regained most of its color, and he no longer walked as if he was expecting a blow at any minute. He smiled often and even laughed.

But she knew he hadn't fully healed. He still suffered from the effects of his ordeal, still remembered the nightmare of having to submit to the depravation of others. She had held him on many occasions when he had woken, crying and shaking. After one of those sessions, he had told her he hadn't cried in ages, not once when he had been living in that apartment. She had given him a small kiss on the tip of his nose and told him that it would be all right. He had gone through a horror that some people might not recover from. He had a right to be tormented from it. She would think it odd if he didn't. Let it out, she had said, let it go.

He had then told her of this little girl he had found, how he had taken her in, tried to help her. But the girl was too far gone, too immersed into this world to imagine any other. He had wondered what had happened to her. Starling suddenly remembered the young girl who had given her the first real clue about Finn's whereabouts. She told him that she was pretty sure she had met the girl, and when they exchanged descriptions, agreed that it was her. Finn had smiled, relieved that she was okay.

Starling didn't tell him about the bruises the girl had been sporting on her arms and around her eye, nor of the missing tooth.

Feeling him stir next to her, Starling put her musings aside and opened her eyes. As she gazed into his blue eyes, she saw both the shadow and the gleam. Giving into the gleam it wasn't long before they were wrapped around and within each other.

That was the other reason they hadn't left yet.


	16. Chapter 16

I bring you tidings...

Chapter 16 -

Aerrow sat in his room and stared at the small crystal that sat on his desk. He and Radarr had landed on Terra Rex to check with Harrier concerning some abandoned Talon base camps. When he had returned to the Condor he had found the other teammates gathered together in the hanger. Piper had handed him the message crystal and told him that it was from Starling.

He had offered to let them all listen, but Piper had told him it had been addressed to him. That it was only right that he should hear it first. He had looked into their worried, concerned faces and reluctantly gave in. He had allowed Radarr to accompany him. He needed some support and his co-pilot would give him strength. And even when Radarr heard the message, he wouldn't be able to repeat the words, so Aerrow would still have to inform the others of whatever it was that Starling had found. Or not found.

Taking a deep breath he reached out a hand towards the crystal and then stopped, wavering. For so long he wanted an answer, any answer. Now that he'd been given one, he wasn't sure if he wanted to hear it. Knowing Starling, she wouldn't have sent a message just letting him know she was still searching. Either she had been successful or she had not. And he knew he didn't want it to be bad news.

Glancing up at Radarr's watching face, he grinned lopsidedly at his loyal partner and remarked at how the small creature must think he was strange sometimes, that all of his teammates were. Radarr's huge eyes looked back at him in all seriousness as the animal shook his head no. Not at all.

Aerrow's grin faded as he once more turned his attention to the message crystal. Reaching forward decisively, he keyed it on. He listened to it through, then replayed it. Once more he listened to the voice of Starling, telling him her findings.

Then he raced out the door.

***

If Stork wasn't piloting the ship, he would have had his hands pressed over his long ears. Even though he had corks shoved deep inside them, he could still hear Junko bellowing out every Wallopian Folk Roar he knew. And standing on top of the Condor while doing so. To make matters worse, Piper of all people had taken out every one of Finn's horrific records and was playing them at top volume. He was certain the ship would break apart any second now from the heavy beat and screeching noises. Add to that was the fact that Aerrow and Piper were dancing madly to the 'music', adding their hysterical laughter to the maelstrom. Radarr wasn't helping either, as he was chirruping and shrieking just as loudly, bouncing all around the bridge.

They had gone insane, all of them. Even he had caught it, as he steered the ship in a wildly convoluted course, matching it's movements to the oddly syncopated rhythm of rock and folk roars. He too was grinning like he'd caught Azerian Laughing Fever. He'd even named the strange but wonderful affliction that had taken hold of each of them.

Finnitis.


	17. Chapter 17

In the meantime, the two lovebirds haven't been spending every moment in bed...

Chapter 17 -

Starling stood and watched as the last of the Atmosian rescue ships lifted off from the terra. Finn was at her side, his arm around her waist. They had done it, alerted the authorities of the awful conditions the refugees were suffering. The rescue forces had landed on terra after terra, gathering up those that wanted to leave (which were most). The ones that did stay were given assistance and then relocated. For as soon as the rescue ships took off came the demolition crews who proceeded to obliterate any and every last remaining scrap of the refugee's horrific living conditions. The locals had howled that they were being invaded, but with no air force greater than the small Sky Police, they hadn't been able to do much. They quieted down some when they were recompensed for the 'help' they had given the immigrants.

Starling hadn't been too happy about that, but the Sky Council wanted reconciliation, not another war. And in the end it worked out fine, the refugees were rescued, the inhabitants had their hated influx of resource-taking 'others' removed from their sight, the local governments received some money along with a nice park that stood where shanties and shacks used to lean.

She and Finn had used the condo as their home base, traveling from the various terras organizing the Great Return as it was being called. Even though Starling did most of the talking, Finn offered support and his own not so unique viewpoint on the refugee's terrible lifestyles. It was hard for the local governments to ignore the plight of those they had sought to hide when one showed up at their doorstep accompanied by a very fierce Sky Knight from Atmosia, ready and willing to call in Atmosia's great warships.

It had been one of the local potentates that had given Starling an idea. He had practically accused them of mounting an undercover operation to embarrass his government. That they were making it seem worse than it was, had they not accepted the refugees? After all, it wasn't as if the refugees had been turned back, or worse - thrown into prison. Finn had laughed sourly at that and stated that was exactly what had happened to the refugees, turned into prisoners who couldn't leave because of the inane fees that kept them in debt, chained as effectively as if they did have iron around wrists and ankles. The man had glared at Finn and asked how did he know? Finn had given him a scathing recital of his own experiences – not leaving out one word. The man had turned apoplectic, claiming that such things couldn't possibly have happened, this was a civilized region. Finn had wanted to strangle the man. Starling had thought of letting him. Instead they had virtually kidnapped the moron and had taken him on a little tour. They had returned a very quiet official who had told them he'd had no idea. They didn't quite believe him, but it was a start.

After that, whenever Starling introduced Finn, she claimed him as one of her operatives, who had helped break the case of the refugees lost plight, alerting the world to the deplorable conditions. If it hadn't been for him, courageously going deep into the appalling underworld of the Norwessunlun's refugee camps, they would still be in the atrocious conditions.

Finn had smiled when she told him of her idea. He had replied that he didn't feel like a hero, that all he had done was survive. She had pulled him into her arms and told him he was a hero, and that sometimes just surviving was the most heroic thing a person could do. After that Finn began to feel a little better about his circumstances, even believing that he did have a hand in the rescue. Perhaps the situation would have eventually come out, but if Starling hadn't come searching for him, things wouldn't have been known as quickly. More people would have suffered longer. He had joked with her, asking if he would get a medal out of this, and if so, to make sure it was shiny and big and had his name on it in great big letters.

Between that and Starling's loving support, he began to heal even more, regaining his confidence and self purpose.

She had asked his permission to contact Aerrow, and he had readily given it. Much as he would have liked to find a nice little hole and crawl into it with Starling, wrap themselves around each other and stay there far away from the rest of the world, he knew it couldn't be so. Plus he missed his friends, he wanted to see them again, congratulate them on their successes. Talk with them, laugh with them, share friendship with them again. He had listened as she recorded the message that told Aerrow that she had found him safe if not exactly sound, that he was helping her with a dire state of affairs that she had found in this far northwestern land and that she would let them know as soon as she could when they could meet. He then had added a short message of his own, telling Aerrow he was sorry and that he missed his best friend and hoped to see him again. Finn had wanted to say much more but knew that had to wait. And what he needed to say had to be said face to face, not delivered on a cold crystal from far distances. Words said a lot but eyes said more.


	18. Chapter 18

More tidings, of an official matter...

Chapter 18 -

Aerrow scowled down at the official looking missive he held in his hands. Most likely another plea from some terra that the 'Hero of Atmos' come and speak at some doings or another. He was a Sky Knight, not a trinket to be paraded about like some great prize. Sure he had been a part of the conquest of Cyclonia, but he hadn't been the only one. Enough already, just let him and his squadron do the job they were meant to do, protect Atmos. There had still been no sign of Master Cyclonis and her few remaining minions, even though all the squadrons were scouring every little rock that poked its head above the clouds. He was seriously considering searching the wastelands as well; he wouldn't put it past the devious female to find some way to survive the intense heat and noxious fumes.

He, along with the rest of his teammates, had been more than a little disappointed not to have been among those that went into the northwest to rescue the refugees that had been kept virtually prisoner. He had been outraged when he had learned of the conditions that the poor people had suffered. All of them had been more than ready to rush in there, start picking up former citizens of Atmos and taking them back to safety, and perhaps thrashing some of the locals in the bargain. But the Sky Council had given him and a few of the other Sky Knights the directive to keep looking for Master Cyclonis, along with dealing with the few remaining rogue terras out there. Without the Cyclonians to keep them contained – not that it really had made a difference – the Murk Raiders were beginning to make more appearances.

But most of all he had wanted to race into the Norwessunluns and find his friends. Nothing had been heard directly from them but that one message. He had taking it to playing it before he went to sleep, just to hear Finn's voice. They had heard some strange rumor of how one of Starling's operatives that just happened to match Finn's description had been the one to break open the despicable truth and that Starling herself had gone in to take control of the operation. They had looked at each other and shrugged, deciding that it worked for them. They had no idea of Finn's true situation, but judging from Starling's cryptic indication that Finn was not well, or something like that, and if she saw the need to present him as one of her own, they weren't going to say otherwise.

He knew the others were beginning to get impatient and if Junko rewired the engines one more time he wasn't sure he could keep Stork from attacking the Wallop. But then he'd had to keep the Wallop from throwing Stork overboard every time the paranoid Merb announced that he was sure the missing two had run into dire straits and had surely met their doom.

Fortunately Piper had managed to take advantage of the down time and kept herself busy as usual, staying in her lab for hours at a time. Aerrow would check on her from time to time, more out of his own boredom and rising frustration than being really worried about her. She'd let him stay until he had gotten on her last nerve, and then he'd escape before she threw something at him.

More than once he would find Radarr observing him quizzically. Not for the first time did he wish his co-pilot could speak. He wondered what the first thing Radarr would say if he could. Probably tell him how weird he was.

Realizing he was still holding the letter in his hand, he tore open the seal and pulled out the handwritten sheet, the letters curling in elaborate style, the whole thing decorated in official seals.

Reading the words he found himself gaping. Who knew?


	19. Chapter 19

At long last, the wait is over...

Chapter 19 -

Finn sat at the table, his hands drumming nervously on the surface. He kept glancing up at the door every five seconds. It was a good thing Starling had made him drink something non-alcoholic, the way he kept guzzling the contents would have caused him to be under the table by now. He glanced over at her and marveled at how cool she seemed to be. How could she just sit there, so calm when…

The door opened and he jumped, turning rapidly to see who was coming in. Seeing some stranger, Finn tried to force himself to relax. Picking up his glass and finding it empty, he signaled for another.

They had returned to Atmosian lands, accompanying the very last rescue ship. They had been asked to stay and help the arriving diplomatic force that was going to try and open up both dialogue and trade with the Norwessunlundians. Finn thought that was quite a mouthful and had proposed just Nordians but since that was too close to Terra Nord he was ignored. Whatever.

Starling had respectfully demurred, saying that diplomacy wasn't her strong point and that it was time she returned to her squadron. They had been given suites of honor in the largest of the rescue ships, a converted Cyclonian Battleship. Finn still laughed, remembering the look on people's faces when that had appeared in the sky. But again Starling had demurred – to Finn's secret displeasure – and had told them that their skimmers were just fine, thank you.

He had changed his tune when they had streaked off from the convoy upon entering Atmosian air space, spending time alone together on deserted terras or little off-side inns. They had still not contacted the Storm Hawks and set up a meeting time and place. Finn was beginning to think that one day they'd streak out of the sky to find the Condor under them, land and that would be that.

Instead they had landed on Atmosia proper. They found a celebration in process and when they had inquired had found that the entire Sky Knight division, each and every squadron was going to be awarded Medals of Honor. All this was to take place in three days time. Even now Sky Knights and their teammates were appearing practically hourly in the skies, although the squadron that was to receive the highest honor, the Atmosian Golden Crystal, had not arrived yet. Rumor had it that they were on the way though, and would arrive the next day.

Somehow Starling found lodging for the two of them, though at a premium.

That night they had fought their first serious argument.

Finn had been all for waiting until after the ceremony to approach his friends. After all, with so much going on, they wouldn't have time to deal with him, too.

Starling had pointed out that she was sure they would want to know he was there before and during the ceremony, that knowing he was there cheering them on would be a great joy to them, along with the relief of finally knowing he was safe and well.

Back and forth they had argued, her green eyes blazing and his blue eyes on fire, until they found themselves screaming at each other. She yelled at him that if he didn't like how things were that maybe he should just return to the Norwessunluns and disappear. He shouted back that maybe he just would, after all.

They had glared at each other, until Starling softly asked what he would do once he got there. Finn's eyes had opened wide and he had turned from her. She stepped close and wrapped her arms tenderly around him and told him how sorry she was, she shouldn't have said that, she had been too angry to think. Finn apologized back, that she was right. He knew that the time to meet his friends was getting closer, probably should have come sooner. But he was just so nervous. Yes he knew she had told him that Aerrow and the others wanted to see him again, but what if she was wrong, what if seeing him again made them angry, reminding them of how he had been. After all, he had resigned from the Storm Hawks, it wasn't like he was a member of the team anymore.

Starling had let out a small sigh and told him how Aerrow had said that if and when he would ever see his wingman again, the first thing he would do was tear up that silly resignation letter. Finn turned and looked at her, searching her eyes. She had dropped them and said she should have told him sooner, but that she felt he needed time to heal, both physically and psychologically. Finn had opened his mouth and then settled for nodding instead. Starling had looked back up at him, her green eyes gleaming and smiled sheepishly at him. Besides, she had said, was it wrong to keep him to herself for just a little while longer?

Finn tried to hide the smile on his face but it broke through. Turning to her he swept her up in his arms and carried her into the bedroom. They would have each other to themselves for at least one more night.

The next morning Starling had sent word to the Condor, naming a small tavern on the outskirts of town. They had received word back that they would be met shortly after noon.

Finn looked at the clock for the millionth time in the last minute. Noon had come and gone. Where were they? Were they not going to show? Had they thought otherwise? Just as he turned to Starling to ask how long they should wait, his ears caught a familiar sound.

The chugging noise of the Condor's engines.

Finn was out the door and running down the field where the big ship was landing. He reached it just as its huge wheels touched ground and the lower bay doors opened, the retractable loading ramp sliding out and down. As soon as his hand took hold of the rail, he stopped. Much as he wanted to race up those stairs he found that he couldn't move. Staring upward he swallowed a huge lump in his throat as he caught sight of movement up above.

Blue eyes stared into grey ones. Grey eyes took in the small, slim figure of a young blond male that was his best buddy and widened. Junko could feel the others behind him, asking what was wrong and would he move already.

Finn swore forever afterwards that the big Wallop had taken one giant leap, landing in front of him and grabbing hold. Finn also swore he felt every bone in his body creak. At first the only thing he could hear was Junko's ecstatic shouting of his name over and over, but gradually he became aware of other voices, female and males, and one that chattered and yipped. They too were calling his name over and over, their voices joyous and welcoming.

He was home.


	20. Chapter 20

A leader's thoughts...

Chapter 20 -

Aerrow stood on the podium surrounded by his teammates. Behind him massed not only the inhabitants of Atmosia terra, but each and every Sky Knight and their Squadrons. Scattered about the crowd were dignitaries representing every terra in Atmosian territory, even the ones so recently in Cyclonian hands. He even thought he had seen the Colonel. He had seen Wren, along with his granddaughter Dove. The dark haired girl had given him a hug. He had returned it, but had kept his hands in proper position, as the older man was giving him a suspicious eye.

Without turning his head he could see his squadron, arranged in a semi-circle around him. They actually cleaned up pretty well. Their uniforms were pressed within an inch of their fabric lives, the leather oiled. Boots and armor were shined till they glittered. Each one had their weapon of choice at hand, also polished. Well, almost all - Aerrow had told Stork that no, he couldn't bring his pots and pans armor to the presentation. That went double for the ring of garlic and the duck-headed life preserver. Stork had sulked for a bit, the invitation had specified that each member was to be fully outfitted.

He glanced at them from the corner of his eyes, starting from his left working in. Junko, standing there with a mixture of pride and awkwardness, knuckle busters displayed on his hands.

Piper, her golden eyes shining with delight, her staff held straight. He knew though she didn't that she was to receive a special award for her work on designing the enhanced crystals.

Then beside him was Radarr. For once the small creature was behaving himself, whether because he understood the solemnity of the occasion or from Aerrow's promise to finally visit the terra of giant bananas once this was over.

Glancing to his far right he took in Stork, who though he stood still, kept darting his eyes all around.

Next in line was Starling, wearing the emblem of the Interceptor on her left shoulder armor and the Storm Hawk design on her right. She caught his look and gave him a slow wink.

Aerrow hid his smile and turned his attention to the last remaining member standing next to him.

They had found that his uniform needed some quick alterations. In the past year he had grown two inches, standing almost even with Aerrow. And though still on the skinny side, his shoulders, chest and thighs had gained some girth. Aerrow regarded his wingman and marksman with unconcealed pride. Finn stood at ease, his shoulders back and his legs balanced. His blond hair was combed back and up, every spike in position.

As the Sky Council leader prattled on and on about the heroic actions of the heroic squadron, led by the heroic Sky Knight on their heroic quest to rid the world of the hated Cyclonians…Aerrow quickly lost interest. If he heard the word heroic one more time he was going to go ballistic. Or throw up. Maybe even both, wouldn't that be an interesting sight?

His mind, still on the figure to his right, began to recall the previous day's events.

They had been nearing Atmosia for the award ceremony when Starling's voice had come over the radio. She told them that she had arrived as well, and that they were to meet her when they got there. She gave them the coordinates and then after ascertaining when they would arrive had signed off. The five teammates had exchanged happy yet puzzled looks. She had made no mention of meeting Finn. Did he not want to see them?

Managing to avoid the curious onlookers that darted about the sky, causing a real concern with air collisions, they had made their way to the tavern at the far edge of the terra. Finding a convenient nearby field, Stork had landed the big ship expertly. Rather than take the skimmers down they had gathered at the loading ramp doors.

Not wanting an impatient Wallop at his heels, Aerrow had allowed Junko to go first. Which was why it had been so odd for the big teen to come to a complete standstill after placing one foot on the ramp. Junko had then moved forward so fast that Aerrow had thought at first that something big had grabbed him. Racing forward he too had come to a complete stop as he beheld the Wallop holding something in his arms. It took a second for Aerrow to decipher Junko's deafening bellows as words. One word. Being yelled over and over.

Somehow he had gotten down the ramp, his legs suddenly shaky. Seeing movement across the field he beheld the figure of Starling, moving toward them. Turning toward the joyous Wallop he found he could barely make out the slight figure, Junko had his arms wrapped around it so tight. But it was enough. Just one glimpse of golden blond hair confirmed it.

Not to mention the breathless squawks that were emanating from somewhere near Junko's chest, that sounded like Junko's name. Or maybe cries for assistance. It was hard to tell.

Between his and Piper's help, he finally managed to pry the Wallop's huge arms from around the slim teen that was being lovingly squeezed to certain death. Finn had popped out and sunk gasping to the ground, but his face was grinning. He barely managed to take a full breath before he was enveloped in Piper's embrace. She rocked him back and forth, all while holding a discourse on why she should knock him upside the head. Radarr had raced madly around the group and then had somersaulted onto Finn's back, chattering wildly and patting Finn's head, neck and shoulders. Even Stork had grabbed hold of Finn by one arm, hanging on tightly and saying how good it was to see Finn again, you wouldn't imagine the horrifying doom they had escaped, that he had been lucky to have escaped it all.

Aerrow thought he saw something strange in Starling's face as she had arrived just then, but his attention was on his best friend.

Finn had opened his eyes as Piper had held him, and his blue gaze had latched onto Aerrow's face. Aerrow stood frozen, just staring at his friend. He found himself blinking over and over, trying to keep the blond in focus. He watched as Finn disentangled himself from Piper's, Radarr's and Stork's embrace and moved to stand in front of Aerrow.

For a long, very long moment they just regarded each other, faces solemn, eyes never leaving the other's. Aerrow was aware on some far away level that Finn looked as if he had recovered from a long illness. Even though the blond seemed healthy, there was lingering paleness to his skin, the flesh stretched a bit tight over slightly more prominent bones. Most of all was the shadow that Aerrow could see lurking deep within Finn's eyes. He was also aware of the sudden stillness that had come over the others.

Aerrow swallowed hard against the tightness of his throat, drew a deep breath even though his chest felt as if a steel band surrounded it. His heart beat as if it was going to explode right out. He wasn't sure, but he thought Finn was slightly trembling. Reaching into his hip satchel, Aerrow pulled out the one thing he hated more than anything. Holding it up so Finn could see and recognize it for what it was, Aerrow took hold of it in both hands. And promptly tore Finn's resignation letter into tiny little pieces, letting them drop to the ground, where the wind took them and scattered them far away.

Then he reached forward and grabbed Finn, holding him hard. He didn't care that he was sobbing like a two year old, so was Finn. So was Junko for that matter. He could hear Piper sniffling hard, and was pretty sure even Starling was weeping. All at once they were grabbed in one big hug as Junko decided that since it was obvious they were together again, let's make sure of it. They collapsed into one big heap of crying Storm Hawks, their tears mingling.

It could have been minutes, it might have been hours. They didn't care if it was days later, but finally they began to calm down, cries became soft hiccups, sobs began to turn into softer laughter, eyes were wiped dry to shine with joy. As one they had stood and walked back up and into the Condor.


	21. Chapter 21

A wrong gone right...

Chapter 21 -

Finn tried to stifle his yawn as the award ceremony threatened to become a lifelong affair. So far five, count them, five Sky Council officials had taken to the podium, to drone on and on and on and on about this amazing accomplishment, that astounding victory, how much Atmosia was in their debt, why the very heavens honored these fine young warriors, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah…

Enough already. Hand out the medals, give us some of the gold you say we're owed and let us out of here. His feet were beginning to fall asleep. And he swore he had heard a snore from Radarr, even though it's eyes were open. They were kind of fixed though.

Eventually, praise the storms and the stars and the little green terras, the pontification came to an end. There was a blast of horns that no doubt served less to announce the appearance of the medal bearers as it was to wake up the gathered crowd. He could hear bodies shifting, along with muttered praises that finally that was over. Their names were called one by one and they approached the podium, where the Head Council, after the usual blather about this particular one's unique talents that had been the deciding factor in the glorious victory, bestowed upon them the coveted Medal of Honor.

Finn wondered what would be said about him. He hadn't been there, hadn't taking part in any of the battles. He watched as first Junko, then Stork, followed by Starling and Radarr were called forward. Each one returned bearing the glittering medal pinned to the right side of their chests.

He applauded just as heartily as Piper received two medals, the second being a meritorious medal awarded for the scientific breakthrough resulting from her unique and amazing talents with the complicated art of Crystal Resonance. As a special honor, a wing of the local university would be named for her, along with a grant to further her studies, if so desired. Piper had walked back to her position a little wobbly, stunned.

Finn had frowned when Aerrow's name was called next. But then again, he hadn't really been a part of the events leading to the defeat of Cyclonia. It really was enough to be standing with them, sharing in their tribute. He cheered as the glowing Golden Crystal was hung about the red-head's neck, placing both fingers into his mouth and blowing the loudest whistle. He couldn't care one whip for the rather stern look one of the more stodgier council members threw his way. Besides, when Aerrow turned around, his face beaming, the entire place had gone nuts, people cheering and clapping and stamping their feet.

It had taken several blasts of the ceremonial horns before order was finally established. Aerrow had walked back to his position and had turned around. Finn took a deep breath, this was it, the home stretch. Another half hour of dribble and then party time. He tried to catch Starling's eyes but she was studiously looking ahead.

He turned his head as the horns blew out another blast, and another medal bearer made her appearance. Even though he heard his name called he wasn't sure if it was really for him. It wasn't until both Aerrow and Starling had given him a push that he moved, stumbling a little towards the podium.

He stood there, his emotions swirling about him as he heard the Head Council begin to speak about the special mission Finn had taken part in, going alone into a vast unknown territory, facing incredible hardships on his quest to rescue the war refugees from the disgraceful sufferings at the hand of the Northwesternland people. Turning to look in back at him, his face incredulous, he beheld his teammates grinning at him. Starling gave him a slow wink and just the barest hint of a kiss.

He tried to listen to the speech the man was giving, to record for posterity every wonderful thing the man said about him, from his daring to his courage to his compassion to his obvious ability to handle adversity in an amazingly mature manner. Finn hoped the snort he had given was taken for agreement and not disbelief. Finally the man had wound down and the medal bearer stepped forward, placing the bright purple ribbon around his neck. He tried to catch a glimpse of the medal that dangled from it and was now lying heavy on his chest, but other than it was gold and large, he hadn't been able to make out the inscription.

Then it had been his turn to face the cheering crowd. He could feel himself blush as all those eyes regarded him. He surveyed the crowd, finding many in it he knew and many more he didn't. He didn't expect to find anyone from Vapos there, he doubted that they would have stayed substantial long enough.

He didn't see the young girl way in the back jumping up and down, waving her hands and calling his name. She had snuck in, told the guards at the gate that she was with the refugee contingent, which was true in its own way. She cheered loudly for the blond young man. She had known he was different, special. No wonder he had tried to help her. She had almost not taken one of the rescue ships, opting to stay, hiding actually. But she was tired of being knocked around and was ready to give something else a chance. She knew if she had never met him, she would have remained hidden. Now she was being fostered by a nice family and was even taking her schoolwork seriously. She poked her tongue at the tooth implant and grinned widely. Yes, he was definitely a hero to her.

Finn decided he couldn't wait and looked down at his medal. He didn't need to turn it around to read what it said. The medal was shiny and big and had his name in large letters. He stared over at Starling, but she had suddenly become very interested in one of the flags on the wall. Finn smiled to himself, he'd find a way to reward her. No doubt she'd squeal with glee.

Once more the horns blared, Finn slowly walked to his position, returning his teammates wide grins and waited impatiently for the ceremony to come to its hopefully quick close.


	22. Chapter 22

All together now...

Chapter 22

Seven sets of eyes looked forward as the ship they were on soared among the clouds. Seven friends stood side by side as the clouds parted for them, distant terras seen standing tall. Seven teammates stood as one as they regarded the far horizon.

Aerrow felt satisfaction, secure in the knowledge that he had the best squadron on Atmos. He didn't need to look at them to know how each one stood, ready for whatever may come. Co-pilot, helmsman, specialist, heavy ballistics, fellow Sky Knight and last of all, but certainly not the least, his wingman and sharpshooter. Aerrow regarded the blond with a mixture of respect and astonishment. Finn certainly was not the boy he had been - in his place stood a young man that had finally reached his true potential. Aerrow had always known Finn had it in him. He had seen the look that Finn would get in his eyes whenever the blond would seek out the calmness within him. Finn maintained that look constantly now. Gone the fear and the doubt and the need to be pompous and overbearing, gone too was the vanity and the impatience, the selfishness and the lack of self control. Finn had left and returned better than ever. Even his sharpshooting skills had returned as if he hadn't picked up his crossbow in over a year. Some whispered that he was better than Ravess ever was.

Piper stood patiently, her able mind going over the plans for the upcoming mission along with cataloging her latest experiments. She had deferred the offer to study at the university, telling the scholars that she was a Storm Hawk first and foremost and her duties lay with her teammates. She glanced over at one that had almost gotten away. He had finally changed, but she wasn't sure if she really liked it that he was now quiet and respectful and a bit more modest than he'd once been. She found she actually missed the way he used to be. Still, he was here and that mattered a lot.

Junko was more than happy. They were all together again and nothing bad could happen now. Sure his best buddy had come back a bit changed, but that was okay. They still had fun.

Stork was also happy. Well, as happy as he could get, all things considered. Sure doom could strike at any moment and was certainly getting ready to, but for now, well, things were all right.

Starling definitely had to admit she was quite happy and satisfied. She had found her place, here among these six young friends. And if one of them was a bit closer to her than the others, well - that was all well and good.

Finn sighed contentedly. He was back where he belonged. And he had not only a girlfriend but a lover. He looked over at his green eyed mate and gave her a secret smile. Perhaps they would do some 'reconnaissance' later, check out one of the nearby terras to see if it really was deserted. His gaze slid away from her and landed on Aerrow, his best friend. The two of them had talked long, each one letting each other know just how important they were to each other. Finn had not told Aerrow everything, even though his leader could sense that Finn still harbored a shadow within him. He told Aerrow that eventually he would share the story with him, but that he needed to forget some things first. Aerrow had looked puzzled, then nodded understanding.

Raddarr looked around at all the gathered friends and chattered with ease. They were all back, all together, a family again. The big ones might be strange, but he loved them just the same.

THE END.

A/N -

Okay, and now for the why's and what for's -

So why did I take the story in the direction it went? Why - being a Finnfanatic, did I take the poor boy to such an extreme? I suppose I wanted to show how far one can fall and still be redeemed. And Finn can be an easy one to do that to, his bad points can be twisted to the breaking point, which makes the resolution just so much more intense and satisfying.

However, I'm not the type to lock myself into the dark, don't like it when a story has gotten to the point of no return. Guess I'm a hopeless romantic at heart and need the happy ending. Yeah - I tear up during sappy commercials.

Why did I pair Starling and Finn? Well, the boy did need some TLC, didn't want to bring in an OC, and Starling needs someone to love (and be loved). I'm pretty open to just about any pairing out there, but I do think these two would be good for each other. Finn offers playfulness and can be conscientous, Starling needs to loosen up and she'd calm him down.

This story, like the rest I've posted so far (except Supply and Demand), were written before the second season had started. I had no idea there was a continous mountain range surrounding the known terras, originally it was just a very large mountain range that seperated Atmos proper from the Norwessluns. Just needed to make a small change to the description and ta-da! Hmmm, perhaps I should play the lotto...

Thanks again to all who read, all who stuck through the story good and bad, a Special Thanks to those that reviewed, and another Very Special Thanks to those that faved.

As always, I take complete responsibility for any and all misspellings, punctuation errors and grammatical nonsense. (Must of...shudders).

And now, due to the approaching holiday, I must bow out for a while. Plus, I have several unfinished stories bouncing around, demanding to see the light. One - an AerrowxPiper romance (haven't forgotten!) along with my version of an origin story featuring how Aerrow and Finn met, along with another FinnxStarling (yeah, I really DO like this pairing). I WILL return. I promise. I'm having too much d*&n fun not to!

Yours,

Liestra


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